DLS team runs first experiments on high field magnet system  

Diamond Light Source’s new I10 Beamline for Advanced Dichroism Experiments (BLADE), has been used by the first scientists to search for “hidden magnetic states”. If found they will provide important confirmation of a theoretical model which would have important applications in magnetic data storage. BLADE incorporates a 14 Tesla superconducting magnet system supplied by Oxford Instruments for ultra-high-vacuum experiments.

The magnet required several months to build and install due to the high level of integration with Diamond equipment required; as a result, the magnet can be swept from -14 T to +14 T in less than an hour, a significant achievement in itself.

Dr Peter Bencok, Senior Beamline Scientist on BLADE, commented: “We are very happy to have received this new high-field superconducting magnet. The first results are very promising and represent an important milestone, not only for the beamline, but for the whole of Diamond. Its magnetic field of 14 Tesla is 300,000 times stronger than the earth’s magnetic field, and about six times stronger than the saturation magnetisation of high purity iron. It will also record the lowest temperature at Diamond of 300 milliKelvin – a chilling minus 272.85 degrees Celsius. The team has worked hard to achieve this milestone and we are really pleased to see that BLADE is playing a key role in important new physics.”