Strength of US High-Magnetic-Field Science is Waning, Academies Report Warns
The U.S. must build new world-leading magnets to keep pace with global competition, the report urges.
On Aug. 13, the National Academies released a consensus report that recommends federal agencies fund construction of new world-leading magnets and expand support for the development of wire technologies within the next two to three years. These steps would help the U.S. regain the lead in magnet technology over European and Asian countries, the report argues.
High magnetic fields are essential for progress in fusion science, medicine, materials science, fundamental physics, and more, according to the report. “It is hard to see how progress can be made in some of these areas without major efforts in the development of high-temperature superconducting wires and magnets,” it states.
The report — the latest in a series on high-magnetic-field science — cites inadequate budgets, the lack of a national agenda, and the lack of a robust commercial industry for key resources as potential barriers to progress thus far.
Building and coordinating new magnets
The report recommends the National Science Foundation fund the construction of new magnets at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida, to surpass the lab’s current records of magnetic field strength. “Moonshot” efforts like an all-superconducting 40 Tesla magnet would cement U.S. leadership in magnetic resonance, it adds.
The NHMFL remains a world-class facility, but “over the past decade, provision of similar facilities in Europe, China, and Japan has grown, often following the U.S. model, with headline capabilities that now match that of the United States,” the report notes, adding that the U.S. would need around 12 high-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) instruments to match European levels.
And though U.S. facilities like the NHMFL are well-funded, the country has many “decentralized” facilities that depend on user fees, limiting researcher access. The report recommends creating a consortium of high-field NMR instrument sites across the U.S., funded and partially coordinated by NSF, the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Energy, “similar to what the worldwide competition has established.”
Ramping up support for wire innovation
The report recommends NSF and DOE “double” their support for developing high-temperature superconducting wires, as the high-temperature superconductor wire that would enable future technologies like muon particle colliders does not have a large-scale commercial source in the U.S. Additionally, certain superconductor materials, including the optimal wire for high-field pulsed magnets, are largely sourced from China or Russia.
The report acknowledges that the fusion industry is driving some development of high-temperature superconductor materials. However, it recommends that NSF, DOE, and NIH create collaborative programs for magnet and wire development to ensure applications for other fields, such as particle physics and condensed matter physics.
Addressing helium shortages for researchers
The report emphasizes that liquid helium has “no substitute” for maintaining low temperatures in condensed matter physics research, including superconducting magnets. However, supply of liquid helium has been limited by high demand across many industries, the sale of the U.S. Helium Reserve, and geopolitical instability. This has led superconducting magnets across the U.S. to be decommissioned, and some university administrators have expressed reluctance to hire researchers in areas requiring helium.
Accordingly, the report recommends giving researchers preferred access to helium extracted from federal lands. It also proposes the U.S. establish a new helium reserve for emergency use, classify helium as a critical material, further fund helium recycling systems, and research materials and designs that reduce or avoid helium use.
Clare Zhang is a science policy reporter at FYI, published by the American Institute of Physics.