The present status of R&D for the muon target at J-PARC: The development of silver-brazing method for graphite

At the J-PARC muon science facility, the muon target was made of an isotropic graphite (IG-43). The energy deposited by the proton beam is estimated to be 3.3 kW on graphite and 600 W on the copper frame. To alleviate the thermal stress, a titanium stress absorber is inserted between the graphite and the copper. Although graphite is known to be difficult to be brazed, the titanium is attached to the graphite through silver-brazing. In this report, we will describe the development of a silver-brazing method for graphite in the fabrication of the J-PARC muon target. A capillary test between the graphite and the titanium was performed to determine the optimal brazing conditions. The test involved bonding graphite and titanium plates while varying the gap between them in order to determine the brazing material and the optimal surface treatment of graphite. Subsequently, a trial muon-production target was fabricated using this optimized brazing method. Specimens were cut from the trial target, and bending test experiments were performed to determine the tensile and shear strength of the interface. As a result, it was confirmed that graphite could be bonded adequately through the silver-brazing.