Fast Diagnostic For Electrical Breakdowns In Vacuum

The design of an inexpensive, small, high bandwidth diagnostic for the study of vacuum insulator flashover is described. The diagnostic is based on the principle of capacitive coupling and is commonly referred to as a D-dot probe due to its sensitivity to the changing of the electric displacement field. The principle challenge for the design proved to be meeting the required mechanical size for the application rather than bandwidth. An array of these probes was fabricated and used in an insulator test stand. Data from the test stand with detailed analysis is presented. A highlight of the application of the probes to the test stand was the ability to detect the charging of the insulator surface by UV illumination as a prelude to the insulator flashover. The abrupt change in the insulator's surface charge during the flashover was also detected

Measuring helical FCG voltage with an electric field antenna

A method of measuring the voltage produced by a helical explosive flux compression generator using a remote electric field antenna is described in detail. The diagnostic has been successfully implemented on several experiments. Measured data from the diagnostic compare favorably with voltages predicted using the code CAGEN, validating our predictive modeling tools. The measured data is important to understanding generator performance, and is measured with a low-risk, minimally intrusive approach

Electrostatic Modeling of Vacuum Insulator Triple Junctions

Triple junctions are often initiation points for insulator flashover in pulsed power devices. The two-dimensional finite-element TriComp [1] modeling software suite was utilized for its electrostatic field modeling package to investigate electric field behavior in the anode and cathode triple junctions of a high voltage vacuum-insulator interface. TriComp enables simple extraction of values from a macroscopic solution for use as boundary conditions in a subset solution. Electric fields computed with this zoom capability correlate with theoretical analysis of the anode and cathode triple junctions within submicron distances for nominal electrode spacing of 1.0 cm. This paper will discuss the iterative zoom process with TriComp finite-element software and the corresponding theoretical verification of the results

Development of the vacuum power flow channel for the Mini-G

Abstract not provide

Understanding High Voltage Vacuum Insulators for Microsecond Pulses

High voltage insulation is one of the main areas of pulsed power research and development since the surface of an insulator exposed to vacuum can fail electrically at an applied field more than an order or magnitude below the bulk dielectric strength of the insulator. This is troublesome for applications where high voltage conditioning of the insulator and electrodes is not practical and where relatively long pulses, on the order of several microseconds, are required. Here we give a summary of our approach to modeling and simulation efforts and experimental investigations for understanding flashover mechanism. The computational work is comprised of both filed and particle-in-cell modeling with state-of-the-art commercial codes. Experiments were performed in using an available 100-kV, 10-{micro}s pulse generator and vacuum chamber. The initial experiments were done with polyethylene insulator material in the shape of a truncated cone cut at +45{sup o} angle between flat electrodes with a gap of 1.0 cm. The insulator was sized so there were no flashovers or breakdowns under nominal operating conditions. Insulator flashover or gap closure was induced by introducing a plasma source, a tuft of velvet, in proximity to the insulator or electrode

Flat plate FCG experimental system for material studies

Abstract not provide

The Full Function Test Explosive Generator

We have conducted three tests of a new pulsed power device called the Full Function Test (FFT). These tests represented the culmination of an effort to establish a high energy pulsed power capability based on high explosive pulsed power (HEPP) technology. This involved an extensive computational modeling, engineering, fabrication, and fielding effort. The experiments were highly successful and a new US record for magnetic energy was obtained

Understanding and Improving High Voltage Vacuum Insulators for Microsecond Pulses

High voltage insulation is one of the main areas of pulsed power research and development, and dielectric breakdown is usually the limiting factor in attaining the highest possible performance in pulsed power devices. For many applications the delivery of pulsed power into a vacuum region is the most critical aspect of operation. The surface of an insulator exposed to vacuum can fail electrically at an applied field more than an order or magnitude below the bulk dielectric strength of the insulator. This mode of breakdown, called surface flashover, imposes serious limitations on the power flow into a vacuum region. This is especially troublesome for applications where high voltage conditioning of the insulator and electrodes is not practical and for applications where relatively long pulses, on the order of several microseconds, are required. The goal of this project is to establish a sound fundamental understanding of the mechanisms that lead to surface flashover, and then evaluate the most promising techniques to improve vacuum insulators and enable high voltage operation at stress levels near the intrinsic bulk breakdown limits of the material. The approach we proposed and followed was to develop this understanding through a combination of theoretical and computation methods coupled with experiments to validate and quantify expected behaviors. In this report we summarize our modeling and simulation efforts, theoretical studies, and experimental investigations. The computational work began by exploring the limits of commercially available codes and demonstrating methods to examine field enhancements and defect mechanisms at microscopic levels. Plasma simulations with particle codes used in conjunction with circuit models of the experimental apparatus enabled comparisons with experimental measurements. The large scale plasma (LSP) particle-in-cell (PIC) code was run on multiprocessor platforms and used to simulate expanding plasma conditions in vacuum gap regions. Algorithms were incorporated into LSP to handle secondary electron emission from dielectric materials to enable detailed simulations of flashover phenomenon. Theoretical studies were focused on explaining a possible mechanism for anode initiated surface flashover that involves an electron avalanche process starting near the anode, not a mechanism involving bulk dielectric breakdown. Experiments were performed in Engineering's Pulsed Power Lab using an available 100-kV, 10-{micro}s pulse generator and vacuum chamber. The initial experiments were done with polyethylene insulator material in the shape of a truncated cone cut at +45{sup o} angle between flat electrodes with a gap of 1.0 cm. The insulator was sized so there were no flashovers or breakdowns under nominal operating conditions. Insulator flashover or gap closure was induced by introducing a plasma source, a tuft of velvet, in proximity to the insulator or electrode

Increased ion temperature and neutron yield observed in magnetized indirectly driven D_{2}-filled capsule implosions on the national ignition facility

The application of an external 26 Tesla axial magnetic field to a D_{2} gas-filled capsule indirectly driven on the National Ignition Facility is observed to increase the ion temperature by 40% and the neutron yield by a factor of 3.2 in a hot spot with areal density and temperature approaching what is required for fusion ignition [1]. The improvements are determined from energy spectral measurements of the 2.45 MeV neutrons from the D(d,n)^{3}He reaction, and the compressed central core B field is estimated to be ∼4.9  kT using the 14.1 MeV secondary neutrons from the D(T,n)^{4}He reactions. The experiments use a 30 kV pulsed-power system to deliver a ∼3  μs current pulse to a solenoidal coil wrapped around a novel high-electrical-resistivity AuTa_{4} hohlraum. Radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulations are consistent with the experiment

Electrostatic modeling of vacuum insulator triple junctions

A comprehensive matrix of 60 tests was designed to explore the effect of calcium chloride vs. sodium chloride and the ratio R of nitrate concentration over chloride concentration on the repassivation potential of Alloy 22. Tests were conducted using the cyclic potentiodynamic polarization (CPP) technique at 75 C and at 90 C. Results show that at a ratio R of 0.18 and higher nitrate was able to inhibit the crevice corrosion in Alloy 22 induced by chloride. Current results fail to show in a consistent way a different effect on the repassivation potential of Alloy 22 for calcium chloride solutions than for sodium chloride solutions