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Extensive mechanical tests on full-size and subsize cables, with and without steel jacket, at liquid nitrogen and liquid helium temperature have been carried out on the three prototype CIC (cable-in-conduit) conductors manufactured for NET (Next European Tokamaks). The measurements include tensile tests from the basis strand to the full size conductor, compression tests of cable and jacket, bending test, friction test between cable and jacket, and transversal and axial cyclic loading with hysteresis measurements. It is suggested that hard copper wires can be expected to provide a good basis for establishing the cabling process for a multistrand superconductor. Heating due to mechanical cycling of cabling is not significant compared to typical AC loss effects. Overall tension of the superconducting strands should be avoided as irreversible mechanical effects seem to occur at low strains (0.3%). >

A 12-T wind-and-react magnet using a 6-kA Nb/sub 3/Sn cable is being contributed by ENEA within the framework of R&D in the European Fusion Program. The authors present results on the strand, jacket, and manufacturing of the cable-in-conduit (CIC) conductor. Data on critical current, AC losses, and RRR on the Nb/sub 3/Sn strand are reported, as well as the mechanical properties at 300 K and 77 K of the modified 316LN jacket before and after heat treatment. The approach used at Europa Metalli-LMI for cabling, compaction, and insertion of the superconducting cable into the circular tube and the method used to reach the final square cross section with the desired void fraction are illustrated and discussed. >