Advanced Heat Transfer Studies in Superfluid Helium for Large-scale High-yield Production of Superconducting Radio Frequency Cavities

Oscillating Superleak Transducers (OSTs) can be used to localize quenches in superconducting radio frequency cavities. In the presented work the occurring thermal effects during such events are investigated both theoretically and experimentally. In the theoretical part the entire heat transfer process from the heat generation to the detection is covered. The experimental part focuses on the effects in superfluid helium. Previous publications observed the detection of an OST signal that was faster than the second sound velocity. This fast propagation could be verified in dedicated small scale experiments. Resistors were used to simulate the quench spots under controlled conditions. The three dimensional propagation of second sound was linked to OST signals for the first time, which improves the understanding of the OST signal and allows to gather information about the heating pulse. Additionally, OSTs were used as a tool for quench localisation on a real size cavity. Their sensitivity as well as the time resolution was proven to be superior to temperature sensors, which were glued to the surface of the cavity.