ZFX--A 350 kJ, 2MA, Z-Pinch Driver

Abstract

ZFX is a new pulse generator designed to drive up to 2 MA into a dense z-pinch formed from a frozen deuterium or D-T fiber. In previous experiments carried out at NRL, this type of pinch was observed to be stable as long as the current was rising. In those experiments, the current was limited by the 640 kA capability of the POSEIDON generator, and the pinch temperature was too low to produce a significant number of thermonuclear reactions. ZFX has been designed to increase the current by a factor of three while maintaining the same 4 kA/nsec rate of rise as POSEIDON. (This relatively slow rate of rise is believed to be a key to the pinch stability.) Simple models3 predict that, provided the stability is maintained for the longer time, a 2 MA pinch formed from frozen D-T should achieve thermonuclear breakdown.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1989
Accession Number
ADA638422

Entities

People

  • A. E. Robson
  • John D. Sethian

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aluminum
  • Capacitors
  • Circuits
  • Dielectrics
  • Electrical Circuits
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Electrodes
  • Electronic Circuits
  • Energy
  • Energy Transfer
  • Engineering
  • Generators
  • High Voltage
  • Military Research
  • Networks
  • Trigger Circuits
  • Z-Pinches

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.