Since 1986, the United States has spent in excess of $500M supporting research and development activities in large superconducting magnets and related cryogenics for the Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) project. Over $300M of this investment has been made in the equipment, facilities, and infrastructure at the SSC Laboratory (SSCL) N15 site. This 100-acre site features a complex of closely grouped, fully integrated fabrication, test, and support buildings and three large state-of-the-art cryogenic systems. Major facilities include the Magnet Development Laboratory (MDL), the Magnet Test Laboratory (MTL), and the Accelerator Systems String Test (ASST) buildings.
A team of outstanding technical and scientific personnel is actively involved in superconducting magnet prototype development and testing programs. Technicians and trained operators, including many of the personnel who commissioned and operated the fabrication and test facilities and cryogenic systems, are employed at the Applied Superconductivity and Cryogenics Technology Center (the Center).
The physical and human assets assembled at the Center represent a national resource that can provide a means for U.S. industry to maintain and extend its international competitiveness in the area of superconductivity and cryogenics. Many programs based on large-scale applications of these critical technologies have previously been impractical due to the large investments required for facilities, infrastructure, and personnel training. Industry, universities, and laboratories now have a unique opportunity to capitalize on the significant investment made at the Center. The Applied Superconductivity and Cryogenics Technology Center, established as a user facility, could support and collaborate with participants to conduct research, prototype development, component and system testing, and basic or applied science experiments in the fields of superconductivity and cryogenics.