Extruded wires having layers of superconducting alloy and refractory meal encased in a normal metal sheath

A superconducting filament comprising a NbTi superconducting alloy core surrounded by one or more separate layers of NbTi alloy, a refractory metal barrier surrounding said layers and normal metal sheath surrounding said barrier, said sheath, layers and core being metallurgically bonded by co-reduction of at least 10 times and a plurality of heat treatments in excess of 450.degree. C. for a total time of at least 10 hours, said separate layers of NbTi having in the aggregate, a higher concentration of Ti than that of the NbTi core.

A superconducting filament comprising a NbTi superconducting alloy core surrounded by at least two separate layers of NbTi alloy, a refractory metal barrier surrounding said layers and a normal metal sheath surrounding said barrier, said sheath, layers and core being metallurgically bonded by co-reduction of at least 10 times, said separate layers of NbTi alloy having an initial grain size less than 22 microns nominal diameter (ASTM micro-grain size 8), said layers of fine grain NbTi sheet being interspersed with at least one layer of Ti.

The process of producing a NbTi superconducting alloy monofilament which comprises surrounding a NbTi superconducting alloy ingot with one or more layers of fine grain NbTi superconducting sheet and an outer refractory metal barrier layer, surrounding said barrier with a copper can, said fine grain layers having a grain size less then 22 microns in diameter, hot isostatically pressing said composite to bond said layers, hot extruding the resultant bonded product and reducing the extruded product to wire having a filament diameter less than 10 microns so that said NbTi layers are each less than 0.5 microns thick, said layers of fine grain NbTi sheet being interspersed with at least one layer of one of the metals Nb or Ti.