Impact of submicron Nb_{3}Sn stoichiometric surface defects on high-field superconducting radiofrequency cavity performance

Abstract

Nb_{3}Sn film coatings have the potential to drastically improve the accelerating performance of Nb superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) cavities in next-generation linear particle accelerators. Unfortunately, persistent Nb_{3}Sn stoichiometric material defects formed during fabrication limit the cryogenic operating temperature and accelerating gradient by nucleating magnetic vortices that lead to premature cavity quenching. The SRF community currently lacks a predictive model that can explain the impact of chemical and morphological properties of Nb_{3}Sn defects on vortex nucleation and maximum accelerating gradients. Both experimental and theoretical studies of the material and superconducting properties of the first 100 nm of Nb_{3}Sn surfaces are complicated by significant variations in the volume distribution and topography of stoichiometric defects. This work contains a coordinated experimental study with supporting simulations to identify how the observed chemical composition and morphology of certain Sn-rich and Sn-deficient surface defects can impact the SRF performance. Nb_{3}Sn films were prepared with varying degrees of stoichiometric defects, and the film surface morphologies were characterized. Both Sn-rich and Sn-deficient regions were identified in these samples. For Sn-rich defects, we focus on elemental Sn islands that are partially embedded into the Nb_{3}Sn film. Using finite element simulations of the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau equations, we estimate vortex nucleation field thresholds at Sn islands of varying size, geometry, and embedment. We find that these islands can lead to significant SRF performance degradation that could not have been predicted from the ensemble stoichiometry alone. For Sn-deficient Nb_{3}Sn surfaces, we experimentally identify a periodic nanoscale surface corrugation that likely forms because of extensive Sn loss from the surface. Simulation results show that the surface corrugations contribute to the already substantial drop in the vortex nucleation field of Sn-deficient Nb_{3}Sn surfaces. This work provides a systematic approach for future studies to further detail the relationship between experimental Nb_{3}Sn growth conditions, stoichiometric defects, geometry, and vortex nucleation. These findings have technical implications that will help guide improvements to Nb_{3}Sn fabrication procedures. Our outlined experiment-informed theoretical methods can assist future studies in making additional key insights about Nb_{3}Sn stoichiometric defects that will help build the next generation of SRF cavities and support related superconducting materials development efforts.