Performance of the final prototype of the 6-kA matching quadrupoles for the LHC insertions and status of the industrialization program

The LHC insertions will be equipped with individually powered superconducting quadrupoles, which have a coil aperture of 56 mm, and operate at a nominal gradient of 200 T/m at 1.9 K and a current of 6 kA. Three versions of the magnet are required for the LHC, with magnetic lengths of 2.4 m, 3.4 m and 4.8 m, but otherwise identical. After a prototype program which validated the design options, the contract for the fabrication of one hundred magnets was adjudicated to European industry. In this report we describe the main construction features of the magnets, present the performance of the final prototype, and give the status of the industrial fabrication program. (3 refs).