High-strength and high-conductivity Cu-Ag alloy sheets: new promising conductor for high-fieId Bitter coils

A sheet-conductor fabrication method has been developed for Cu-Ag alloys containing 6-24 mass% Ag. Both the strength and the conductivity of the sheet were improved remarkably by the repetition of heat treatment combined with cold working. The intermediate heat treatments were repeated 3 times at 400-450°C for 1-2 h at appropriate stages of cold rolling. The optimized Cu-24 mass% Ag alloy sheet with a 96% reduction ratio showed a ultimate tensile strength of 1050 MPa and an electrical conductivity of 75% IACS at room temperature. Anisotropy in the strength with respect to the rolling direction was less than 10% and no anisotropy in the electrical conductivity were observed. The sheets fabricated by this method are promising as conductors for high-field Bitter magnet coils