Analysis of Current Redistribution in a CICC under Transient Heat Pulses

We have performed experiments and simulations of the current distribution process in a CICC with the aim to understand better the coupled thermal, hydraulic and electric process that leads to a stable or unstable transient cable behaviour. The cable, wound from 128 Nb$_{3}$Sn and pure copper strands, has been tested in the SULTAN facility. A resistive heater, glued on the jacket of the conductor, has been used to start the transient, and the response has been monitored with arrays of Hall plates. In this paper we report the results of simulations, especially the computed Hall signals, and compare them to the experimental data. Based on the experimental results and their interpretation we postulate that large temperature gradients must develop in the helium stream in the cable cross sections during the transient heat pulse.