X-Ray Backlighting of Developments of $X$-pinches and Wire-Array $Z$-pinches Using an $X$-pinch

Abstract

A pulsed-power generator (PPG-I) with a current of 400 kA in amplitude and 100 ns in pulsewidth was constructed. The development of <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">X</i> -pinches and the early stages of wire-array <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Z</i> -pinches were investigated by X-ray backlighting using the <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">X</i> -pinch driven by PPG-I as X-ray source. The plasma explosion and implosion near the cross point of the X-shape wires can be clearly seen from a series of backlighting images taken at different times of <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">X</i> -pinch discharge. To study the early behavior of the plasma in wire-array <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Z</i> -pinches, an <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">X</i> -pinch installed in the place of a current-return rod was used as the X-ray source to backlight a wire-array <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Z</i> -pinch installed in the center between the anode and the cathode. The plasma formation, the interwire plasma merging, and the instabilities were also clearly observed, which can provide a better understanding of the physics of <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Z</i> -pinches and the basic experimental data to validate simulation models.