Neutron irradiation poses significant challenges for superconducting materials in high-energy physics applications and fusion reactors. This study investigates the effects of neutron irradiation on practical superconductors, focusing on REBCO-based high-temperature superconductors (HTS). We irradiated samples with varying neutron fluences up to 1022 n/m2 at research reactors in the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre and Japan Atomic research Agency. Critical current measurements at variable temperatures were performed to investigate the effect of neutron irradiation on the superconducting properties of conductors.
This study provides crucial insights into the neutron irradiation tolerance of REBCO coated conductors, paving the way for their implementation in next-generation high-radiation environments accelerator projects with an estimated absorbed dose of over 100 MGy.
This work was performed under the GIMRT Program of the Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University (Proposal No. 202012-IRKMA-0051, 202212-IRKMA-0507).