The Titanium Vacuum Chamber for the Zero Gradient Synchrotron

An all metal, titanium alloy inner vacuum chamber has been built for the Zero Gradient Synchrotron (ZGS). This chamber has high radiation resistance, high mechanical strength, and provides mountings for pole face windings. The upper and lower surfaces of the chamber consist of 0.012" titanium skins which span the 32" aperture along the 54' length of the octant. These skins are reinforced with radial T-shaped ribs 3/8" high to withstand the design loading of 30 torr. The 20 miles of titanium ribs are diffusion bonded to the skins to provide high strength joints without welding. Eddy-current problems are minimized by using an alloy of high electrical resistivity. Pole face windings mounted in holes in the ribs will be used to correct the effects of the residual eddy currents. Many of the new techniques that were developed for aerospace applications were used to produce and test this chamber. These techniques and the results of the tests will be discussed.