An apparatus for studying electrical breakdown in liquid helium at 0.4 K and testing electrode materials for the neutron electric dipole moment experiment at the Spallation Neutron Source

Journal Article · Fri Apr 15 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Review of Scientific Instruments

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4946896· OSTI ID:22597144

Ramsey, J. C.; Clayton, S. M.; Currie, S. A.; Griffith, W. C.; Makela, M.; Tang, Z.; Wei, W. ^[1]; Yao, W.; Cianciolo, V. ^[2]; Beck, D. H.; Williamson, S. E. ^[3]; Crawford, C.; Wagner, D. ^[4]; Filippone, B. W.; Schmid, R. ^[5]; Seidel, G. M. ^[6]

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1. Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545 (United States)
2. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States)
3. Loomis Laboratory of Physics, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801 (United States)
4. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506 (United States)
5. W. K. Kellogg Radiation Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125 (United States)
6. Department of Physics, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912 (United States)

We have constructed an apparatus to study DC electrical breakdown in liquid helium at temperatures as low as 0.4 K and at pressures between the saturated vapor pressure and ∼600 Torr. The apparatus can house a set of electrodes that are 12 cm in diameter with a gap of 1–2 cm between them, and a potential up to ±50 kV can be applied to each electrode. Initial results demonstrated that it is possible to apply fields exceeding 100 kV/cm in a 1 cm gap between two electropolished stainless steel electrodes 12 cm in diameter for a wide range of pressures at 0.4 K. We also measured the current between two electrodes. Our initial results, I < 1 pA at 45 kV, correspond to a lower bound on the effective volume resistivity of liquid helium of ρ{sub V} > 5 × 10{sup 18} Ω cm. This lower bound is 5 times larger than the bound previously measured. We report the design, construction, and operational experience of the apparatus, as well as initial results.

• OSTI ID: 22597144
• Journal Information: Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 87, Issue 4; Other Information: (c) 2016 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0034-6748
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ELECTRIC DIPOLE MOMENTS
ELECTRIC DIPOLES
ELECTRICAL FAULTS
ELECTRODES
EQUIPMENT
HELIUM
LIQUIDS
NEUTRON SOURCES
NEUTRONS
SPALLATION
STAINLESS STEELS
TESTING
VAPOR PRESSURE