Magnetic Field Quality of Short Superconducting Dipole Model Magnets for LHC

A series of 1-m long, 56 mm aperture dipole models has been built and tested at CERN within the scope of the R&D program for LHC. Here we report a summary of results of warm and cold steady state field measurements in these models, concentrating on the contribution of the coil geometry. The first allowed harmonics are clearly correlated to the coil azimuthal size, and the slope of the correlation can be predicted accurately

Development of functional markers specific for seven Pm3 resistance alleles and their validation in the bread wheat gene pool

In the ideal case, molecular markers used for marker-assisted selection are allele-specific even if the alleles differ only by a few nucleotide polymorphisms within the coding sequence of target genes. Such ‘perfect' markers are completely correlated with the trait of interest. In hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) the Pm3 locus encodes seven alleles (Pm3a-Pm3g) conferring resistance to different races of Blumeria graminis f.sp. tritici, the agent of powdery mildew, a major disease of bread wheat. All Pm3 alleles are known at the molecular level. Here, we generated specific markers for the Pm3 alleles based on nucleotide polymorphisms of coding and adjacent non-coding regions. The specificity of these markers was validated in a collection of 93 modern or historically important cultivars and breeding lines of wheat and spelt (Triticum spelta L.). These markers confirmed the presence of the predicted Pm3 alleles in 31 varieties and lines known to carry Pm3 resistance alleles. In a few varieties, Pm3 alleles different from alleles previously described based on pathogenicity tests or tightly linked markers were observed. In all these cases, the identity of the marker-detected Pm3 alleles was confirmed by DNA sequence analysis. Pm3 markers confirmed the absence of known Pm3 resistance alleles in 54 European wheat and spelt varieties in which Pm3 alleles had not been previously identified. These results indicate that the developed markers are highly diagnostic for specific Pm3 resistance alleles in a wide range of varieties and breeding lines, and will be useful (1) for identifying Pm3 alleles in the wheat gene pool, (2) for efficient marker-assisted selection of these genes, and (3) for combining multiple Pm3 alleles within a single cultivar through transgenic approache

Manufacture and Test of a Small Ceramic-Insulated Nb3_{3}Sn Split Solenoid

A small split solenoid wound with high-Jc Nb$_{3}$Sn conductor, constituted by a 0.8 mm Rod Re-stack Process (RRP®) strand, was built and tested at CERN in order to study the applicability of: 1) ceramic wet glass braid insulation without epoxy impregnation of the magnet; 2) a new heat treatment devised at CERN and particularly suitable for reacting RRP® Nb$_{3}$Sn strands. This paper briefly describes the solenoid and the experimental results obtained during 4.4 K and 1.9 K tests. The split solenoid consists of two coils (25 mm inner diameter, 51.1 mm outer diameter, 12.9 mm height). The coils were initially separately tested, in an iron mirror configuration, and then tested together in split solenoid configuration. In all the tests at 4.4 K the coils reached a current higher than 95 % of their short sample limits at the first quench; in split solenoid configuration the maximum field values in the coils and in the aperture were respectively 10.7 T and 12.5 T. At 1.9 K the coils had premature quenches due to self field instability despite the rather high RRR of the two coils (190 and 270). This phenomenon at 1.9 K, predicted by our theory [1], was confirmed by strand measurements

Coil Size and Geometric Field Quality in Short Model Dipoles for LHC

We have measured the magnetic field at room temperature and at 1.8 K on more than twenty, 1-m long, single aperture LHC superconducting dipole models. The magnets feature either a 5-block coil geometry or the baseline 6-block geometry foreseen for the LHC. Comparison of warm and cold measurements show that the coil geometry is essentially unchanged during cooldown. We have therefore used mechanical measurements taken on the coil and collars during assembly to estimate the azimuthal coil length. Based on these measurements we show here that the sensitivity of allowed harmonics on coil size is in good agreement with the prediction obtained from the numerical model used for designing the LHC magnets

Association mapping of Stagonospora nodorum blotch resistance in modern European winter wheat varieties

Association mapping in populations relevant for wheat breeding has a large potential for validating and fine-mapping QTLs identified in F2- or DH (double haploid)-derived populations. In this study, associations between markers in the region of QSng.sfr-3BS, a major QTL for resistance to Stagonospora nodorum glume blotch (SNG), and SNG resistance were investigated by linkage and association analyses. After increasing marker density in 240 F5:7 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), QSng.sfr-3BS explained 43% of the genetic variance and peaked 0.6cM proximal from the marker SUN2-3B. Association between SNG resistance and markers mapped in the region of QSng.sfr-3BS was investigated in a population of 44 modern European winter wheat varieties. Two genetically distinct subpopulations were identified within these lines. In agreement with linkage analyses, association mapping by a least squares general linear model (GLM) at marker loci in the region of QSng.sfr-3BS revealed the highest association with SNG resistance for SUN2-3B (p<0.05). Association mapping can provide an effective mean of relating genotypes to complex quantitative phenotypes in hexaploid wheat. Linkage disequilibrium (r 2) in chromosome 3B extended less than 0.5cM in 44 varieties, while it extended about 30cM in 240 RILs, based on 91 SSR and STS marker-pair comparisons. This indicated that the association mapping population had a marker resolution potential at least 390-fold higher compared to the RIL populatio