Cavallo's Multiplier for in situ Generation of High Voltage

Abstract

A classic electrostatic induction machine, Cavallo's multiplier, is suggested for in situ production of very high voltage in cryogenic environments. The device is suitable for generating a large electrostatic field under conditions of very small load current. Operation of the Cavallo multiplier is analyzed, with quantitative description in terms of mutual capacitances between electrodes in the system. A demonstration apparatus was constructed, and measured voltages are compared to predictions based on measured capacitances in the system. The simplicity of the Cavallo multiplier makes it amenable to electrostatic analysis using finite element software, and electrode shapes can be optimized to take advantage of a high dielectric strength medium such as liquid helium. A design study is presented for a Cavallo multiplier in a large-scale, cryogenic experiment to measure the neutron electric dipole moment.

arXiv comment9 pages, 10 figures

References in corpus (7)

• The XENON100 Dark Matter Experiment
• Plans for a Neutron EDM Experiment at SNS
• Vortex avalanches and the onset of superfluid turbulence
• High Voltage in Noble Liquids for High Energy Physics
• An apparatus for studying electrical breakdown in liquid helium at 0.4 K and testing electrode materials for the SNS nEDM experiment
• First test of a high voltage feedthrough for liquid Argon TPCs connected to a 300 kV power supply
• Future liquid Argon detectors

Cited by in corpus (3)

• A study of DC electrical breakdown in liquid helium through analysis of the empirical breakdown field distributions
• ALETHEIA: Hunting for Low-mass Dark Matter with Liquid Helium TPCs
• The neutron electric dipole moment experiment at the Spallation Neutron Source