Paul F. Ottinger

Current distribution in a plasma erosion opening switch

The current distribution in a plasma erosion opening switch is determined from magnetic field probe data. During the closed state of the switch the current channel broadens rapidly. The width of the current channel is consistent with a bipolar current density limit imposed by the ion flux to the cathode. The effective resistivity of the current channel is anomalously large. Current is diverted to the load when a gap opens near the cathode side of the switch. The observed gap opening can be explained by erosion of the plasma. Magnetic pressure is insufficient to open the gap.

Investigation of plasma opening switch conduction and opening mechanisms

Plasma opening switch techniques have been developed for pulsed power applications to exploit the advantages of electrical energy storage in a vacuum inductor compared to conventional, capacitive-based energy storage. Experiments are described that demonstrate the successful application of these techniques in conduction time ranges from 50 ns to over 1 mu s. Physics understanding of the conduction and opening mechanisms is far from complete; however, many insights have been gained from experiments and theory. Measurements of current distribution, plasma density, and ion emission indicate that conduction and opening mechanisms differ for the 50 ns and 1 mu s conduction times. For the 50 ns conduction time case, switching begins at a current level close to the bipolar emission limit, and opening could occur primarily by erosion. In the 1 mu s conduction time case, limited hydrodynamic plasma displacement implies far higher plasma density than is required by the bipolar emission limit. Magnetic pressure is required to augment erosion to generate the switch gap inferred from experiments. >

Evaluation of self-magnetically pinched diodes up to 10 MV as high-resolution flash X-ray sources

The merits of several high-resolution, pulsed-power-driven, flash X-ray sources are examined with numerical simulation for voltages up to 10 MV. The charged particle dynamics in these self-magnetically pinched diodes (SMPDs), as well as electron scattering and energy loss in the high-atomic-number target, are treated with the partic by coupling the output from LSP with the two-dimensional component of the integrated tiger series of Monte Carlo electron/photon transport codes, CYLTRAN. The LSP/CYLTRAN model agrees well with angular dose-rate measurements from positive-polarity rod-pinch-diode experiments, where peak voltages ranged from 5.2-6.3 MV. This analysis indicates that, in this voltage range, the dose increases with angle and is a maximum in the direction headed back into the generator. This suggests that high-voltage rod-pinch experiments should be performed in negative polarity to maximize the extracted dose. The benchmarked LSP/CYLTRAN model is then used to examine three attractive negative-polarity diode geometry concepts as possible high-resolution radiography sources for voltages up to 10 MV. For a 2-mm-diameter reentrant rod-pinch diode (RPD), a forward-directed dose of 740 rad(LiF) at 1 m in a 50-ns full-width at half-maximum radiation pulse is predicted. For a 2-mm-diameter nonreentrant RPD, a forward-directed dose of 1270 rad(LiF) is predicted. For both RPDs, the on-axis X-ray spot size is comparable to the rod diameter. A self-similar hydrodynamic model for rod expansion indicates that spot-size growth from hydrodynamic effects should be minimal. For the planar SMPD, a forward-directed dose of 1370 rad(LiF) and a similar X-ray spot size are predicted. These results show that the nonreentrant RPD and the planar SMPD are very attractive candidates for negative-polarity high-resolution X-ray sources for voltages of up to 10 MV.

Experimental evaluation of a megavolt rod-pinch diode as a radiography source

The rod-pinch diode is a cylindrical pinched-beam diode that provides an intense pulsed small-diameter bremsstrahlung source for radiography. For this work, the diode consists of a 1- to 6.4-mm-diameter anode rod that extends through the hole of an annular cathode. After exiting the cathode, wider anodes taper down to a 1 mm diameter. All of the anode rods then have a 1-mm-diameter tungsten tip that is usually tapered to a point. Rod-pinch diodes with anode rods of different materials, lengths, and diameters were powered by the Gamble II generator at peak voltages of 1.0 to 1.8 MV and peak currents of 30 to 60 kA. The radiation was characterized with temporally and spatially resolved X-ray diagnostics. Pinhole-camera images and time-resolved pin-diode measurements indicate that the radiation is emitted primarily from the vicinity of the rod tip. The dose measured with thermoluminescent detectors through a plexiglass transmission window ranges from 0.6 to 2.8 R at 1 m from the rod tip and the dose/charge scales faster than linearly with the diode voltage. The full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the radiation pulse is 30 to 50 ns. The size of the radiation source-is determined by measuring its edge spread function. The source diameter, defined here as the FWHM of the derivative of the edge spread function, decreases from 2 mm for a 6.4-mm-diameter rod to 1 mm or less for a 1-mm-diameter rod. Analysis suggests that the central portion of the radiation distribution at the source can be approximated by a uniformly radiating circular disc.

Effect of pulse sharpening on imploding neon Z‐pinch plasmas

The radial implosion of hollow, cylindrical neon gas columns, driven by currents of up to 1.45 MA, produces a linear Z pinch with over 70% of the radiation in neon K lines. A plasma erosion opening switch (PEOS) is used to eliminate prepulse and to reduce the current rise time from ∼60 to ∼20 ns. Incorporation of the PEOS improves the uniformity of the Z pinch and increases the radiation yield.

High‐voltage, high‐power operation of the plasma erosion opening switch

A plasma erosion opening switch (PEOS) is used as the opening switch for a vacuum inductive storage system driven by a 1.8‐MV, 1.6‐TW pulsed power generator. A 135‐nH vacuum inductor is current charged to ∼750 kA in 50 ns through the closed PEOS which then opens in <10 ns into an inverse ion diode load. Electrical diagnostics and nuclear activations from ions accelerated in the diode yield a peak load voltage (4.25 MV) and peak load power (2.8 TW) that are 2.4 and 1.8 times greater than ideal matched load values for the same generator values.

Long conduction time plasma erosion opening switch experiment

A plasma erosion opening switch, coupled to a small capacitor bank, conducts 120 kA for 400 ns before opening in 40 ns. Voltages above 170 kV are produced through the use of an electron beam diode. These voltages exceed the initial capacitor bank voltage by a factor of 4. Current and magnetic field measurements indicate that the same current conduction and opening processes observed in earlier erosion switch experiments are involved here at tenfold greater conduction times, verifying the current controlled nature of plasma erosion switch operation.

High-Power Self-Pinch Diode Experiments for Radiographic Applications

We report here on self-magnetic-pinch diode experiments at voltages from 3.5 to 6 MV. In addition to electrical diagnostics, the diode is characterized as a radiation source by dose and spot-size measurement. As the operating voltage increases, we find that a given diode geometry tends to produce a smaller spot but suffers from the reduced impedance lifetime. Optimization involves increasing the cathode diameter and diode gap as the voltage increases. We find a good quantitative agreement with the Monte Carlo code integrated tiger series over the entire data set, assuming an effective electron incidence angle of 20deg. Over this range, we observe favorable dose and spot scaling of optimized diode performance with voltage. Our best results are roughly 200-rad at 1 m with an ~2-mm-diameter spot. These were obtained at diode parameters of roughly 6 MV, 150 kA, and 30-ns radiation full-width at half-maximum.

MHD-to-PIC transition for modeling of conduction and opening in a plasma opening switch

The plasma opening switch (POS) is a critical element of some inductive-energy-storage pulsed-power generators. Detailed understanding of plasma redistribution and thinning during the POS conduction phase can be gained through magnetohydrodynamic fluid (MHD) simulations. As space-charge separation and kinetic effects become important late in the conduction phase (beginning of the opening phase), MHD methods become invalid and particle-in-cell (PIC) methods should be used. In this paper, the applicability of MHD techniques is extended into PIC-like regimes by including nonideal MHD phenomena such as the Hall effect and resistivity. The feasibility of the PIC technique is, likewise, extended into high-density, low-temperature-MHD-like regimes by using a novel numerical cooling algorithm. At an appropriate time, an MHD-to-PIC transition must be accomplished in order to accurately simulate the POS opening phase. The mechanics for converting MHD output into PIC input are introduced, as are the transition criteria determining when to perform this conversion. To establish these transition criteria, side-by-side MHD and PIC simulations are presented and compared. These separate simulations are then complemented by a proof-of-principle MHD-to-PIC transition, thereby demonstrating this MHD-to-PIC technique as a potentially viable tool for the simulation of POS plasmas. Practical limitations of the MHD-to-PIC transition method and applicability of the transition criteria to hybrid fluid-kinetic simulations are discussed.

Transport of intense light ion beams

Theoretical and experimental research concerning two techniques for transporting intense light ion beams is described. The first technique uses the magnetic field associated with a wall-stabilized z-discharge to radially confine and guide the beam, and the second technique uses the magnetic field from a central current-carrying wire. The ion beam for the experiments is generated and weakly focused onto the aperture of the transport system using a pinch-reflex ion diode on the Naval Research Laboratory Gamble II generator. Typically 1.2-MeV, 100-kA proton beams are transported within radii as small as 1 cm. High-efficiency transport of beams has been demonstrated for both techniques over distances of a few metes. Beam charge and current neutralization were also confirmed. Nuclear diagnostics and shadowboxes were used to measure beam transport efficiency and phase space information for comparison with theoretical predictions. Particle transport efficiencies as high as 100% for the z-discharge technique and 80% for the wire-guided technique were observed. >