Superconducting System Group

2023.04.01 Update

Superconductors, which can carry electric current with zero resistance, are the ultimate energy-saving materials. It is one of the most promising candidates to solve environmental and energy problems. It is expected to be applied to power transmission cables and superconducting magnets. In particular, high-temperature superconductors (HTS) with a superconducting transition temperature of 25 K or higher are expected to be used for superconducting systems that can be operated without using rare and expensive liquid helium. Our research interests range from the development of superconducting systems to the improvement of properties of HTS wires.

Research Interests

Our research interests are development of superconducting magnets, HTS wires, and superconducting joints. In collaboration with Magnetic Refrigeration System Group, we are developing a superconducting magnet for a magnetic refrigeration system for hydrogen liquefaction. In addition, we are developing a 1.3 GHz (31.5 T) NMR magnet in collaboration with Laboratory for Functional Ultra-High-Field Magnet Technology, RIKEN. In HTS wire development, we are studying Bi-2223 thin films to elucidate the phase evolution that leads to a significant increase in current carrying capacity. We are also developing a wire fabrication process for MgB2. Recently, we have developed a superconducting joint resistance evaluation system. Using this system, we are studying the performance of superconducting joints not only from a macroscopic point of view but also from a microscopic one.




Facilities

Our wire processing facilities include drawing, pressing, rolling, and swaging machines. We also possess extensive characterization equipment such as scanning electron microscopes (SEM), optical microscopes (OM), thermogravimetry-differential thermal analysis apparatus (TG-DTA), X-ray diffraction equipment (XRD), and inductively coupled plasma equipment (ICP).




Selected Recent Results

  • Generation of high magnetic field over 30 Tesla using two types of high-Tc superconductor.
  • Our NMR equipment achieved the world’s highest magnetic field to date (1020 MHz) and consequently won the “Award on Superconductivity Science and Technology.”
  • Our superconductive NMR magnet has achieved the highest magnetic field (1020 MHz = 24.0 T) in NMR reported to date.

The 1.02-GHz NMR system constructed by the NIMS group




Recent Progress of HTS

Bi system superconductor discovered by National Institute for Materials Science (Old National Research Institute for Metals) are now used for practical applications such as electric power cable and high field magnets.



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Superconducting System Group
1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-0047 JAPAN
E-Mail: NISHIJIMA.Gen=nims.go.jp(Please change "=" to "@")