Name:
Steve Lamoreaux
Position:
Professor of physics
What do you do here at Wright Lab?
I am Principal Investigator (PI) of the HAYSTAC experiment that is located in Wright Lab West (WLW)-326. I started on this experiment on May 8, 2010, when I answered an invitation from Karl van Bibber to start a new axion dark matter experiment at higher frequencies that were then currently being explored. Orginally, the experiment was called ADMX-HF (axion dark matter experiment- high frequency)
What is the most unique and/or exciting experience you’ve had here at Wright Lab?
March 9, 2016 there was an unexpected power outage that affected the entire campus (switching error at the Power Plant). This was just after a Monday meeting. Ling Zhong, Ben Brubaker and I were in the HAYSTAC lab discussing the current data run when the lights went out. Four minutes later the superconducting magnet quenched. (The energy stored in the magnet is roughly equal to the kinetic energy of a mid size car traveling at 40 mph). When the magnet quenched there was a soft “ting” and the “current in leads” light in the magnet supply went on briefly. I simply said something like we probably have some work to do…. There is a photograph of Ben with a horrified expression as he viewed the misshaped cryogenic shield when the experiment was being separated from the magnet. Despite the extensive damage inside the cryostat, none of the 3He was lost from the dilution refrigerator system. Repairs took a few months–the Gibbs shop was able to flatten the plate, and Matthias Beuhler from Low Temperature Solutions in Munich came and restored the rest–and we made some improvements that likely removed the major source damage should this happen again.
Here are some pictures of HAYSTAC after the event (1-3) and recently (4-5): The one with Ben (#2) shows a bulge in a thermal shield, this is due to the internal pressure of the magnetic field inside the cylinder when the field outside collapsed. It’s a nice illustration of Lenz’s law. The third one is the mixing chamber plate of the dilution refrigerator. It should be flat.
What are you looking forward to in the coming year at Wright Lab?
The Covid-19 pandemic being declared “Over” and getting back to in person talks, lunches, and all of that, and getting HAYSTAC back on line.
What is something that people might not know about you that you’d like to share with the community?
I used to be able to run a 4 minute mile; these days all I might muster is a four minute myocardial infarction. My dad was a semi-pro boxer and taught me how to do that with some proficiency.
I am a licensed amateur radio operator, and was first licensed in 1972 (14 years old). The Yale amateur radio club made it possible for me to renew my license; my current call sign is KZ1S. HAYSTAC is a radio receiver, so I have enjoyed working on it. I like to map physics problems onto electronic circuits, and statistical analysis onto communications theory.