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Description
High-temperature superconductors (HTS) represent a key enabling technology for compact fusion devices, where high current density, reduced cryogenic loads and enhanced magnetic performance are essential. Within the Tuscia Research University Small Tokamak (TRUST) project, an university-scale tokamak conceived as an academic platform for HTS and under construction at University of Tuscia (UNITUS), the development of fully insulated superconducting coils provides both a technological benchmark and a validation environment for new manufacturing and diagnostic methodologies. This work presents the electromagnetic and mechanical characterization of a fully insulated REBCO coil, designed and fabricated in collaboration with ASG Superconductors for the TRUST superconductivity programme. The coil adopts a 12 mm-wide SuNAM REBCO winding pack around a rigid mandrel, with complete Kapton insulation and no resin impregnation, enabling the integrated study of design choices, manufacturing constraints, operational behaviour and measurement performance. Analytical models and critical current estimation are implemented and validated against FEM magnetostatic simulations. The coil is subsequently tested in cryogenic conditions using a custom measurement setup developed with ENEA and reproduced at UNITUS, enabling the assessment of the magnetic field distribution, quench behaviour and deviations from the ideal superconducting response. The combined modelling–manufacturing–testing workflow highlights the role of insulation and mechanical boundary conditions in determining the coil’s performance and stability. The results support the progressive integration of HTS coils into the TRUST tokamak framework and contribute to the broader development of HTS technologies for compact fusion devices.
