Numerical studies on the radiation uniformity of Z-pinch dynamic hohlraum

Abstract

Radiation uniformity is important for Z-pinch dynamic hohlraum driven fusion. In order to understand the radiation uniformity of Z-pinch dynamic hohlraum, the code MULTI-2D with a new developed magnetic field package is employed to investigate the related physical processes on Julong-I facility with drive current about 7–8 MA. Numerical simulations suggest that Z-pinch dynamic hohlraum with radiation temperature more than 100 eV can be created on Julong-I facility. Although some X-rays can escape out of the hohlraum from Z-pinch plasma and electrodes, the radiation field near the foam center is quite uniform after a transition time. For the load parameters used in this paper, the transition time for the thermal wave transports from r = 1 mm to r = 0 mm is about 2.0 ns. Implosion of a testing pellet driven by cylindrical dynamic hohlraum shows that symmetrical implosion is hard to achieve due to the relatively slow propagation speed of thermal wave and the compression of cylindrical shock in the foam. With the help of quasi-spherical implosion, the hohlraum radiation uniformity and corresponding pellet implosion symmetry can be significantly improved thanks to the shape modulation of thermal wave front and shock wave front.