Characterization of Nb SRF cavity materials by white light interferometry and replica techniques

Much work has shown that the topography of the interior surface is an important contributor to the performance of Nb superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) accelerator cavities. Micron-scale topography is implicated in non-linear loss mechanisms that limit the useful accelerating gradient range and impact cryogenic cost. Aggressive final chemical treatments in cavity production seek to reliably obtain “smoothest” surfaces with superior performance. Process development suffers because the cavity interior surface cannot be viewed directly without cutting out pieces, rendering the cavities unavailable for further study. Here we explore replica techniques as an alternative, providing imprints of cavity internal surface that can be readily examined. A second matter is the topography measurement technique used. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has proven successful, but too time intensive for routine use in this application. We therefore introduce white light interferometry (WLI) as an alternative approach. We examined real surfaces and their replicas, using AFM and WLI. We find that the replica/WLI is promising to provide the large majority of the desired information, recognizing that a trade-off is being made between best lateral resolution (AFM) and the opportunity to examine much more surface area (WLI).