Superconducting Noncontact Device for Precision Positioning in Cryogenic Environments

In this paper, a noncontact linear positioner based on superconducting magnetic levitation for high-precision positioning has been tested under cryogenic conditions (~20 K and ~10
^-6
Pa). The prototype is able to achieve submicrometric positioning resolution of 230 ± 30 nm RMS along a stroke of ±9 mm length with a current resolution of 15 μA, and a peak current requirement lower than ±500 mA. In addition, it was demonstrated that an open-loop control strategy could be used for positioning the moving part with the accuracy of the order of 1 μm. On the other hand, deviations of the slider position were found to be ±650 μrad for the pitch, lower than 100 μrad for the yaw, ±2000 μrad for the roll, and ±4 μm for the lateral run, all of them related to a full stroke motion. These results reveal a good performance of the device and demonstrate the potential of a new tool for applications, where high-precision positioning is required within a long range in cryogenic environments like far-infrared interferometry.