Spectral Resolution for Five-Element, Filtered, X-Ray Detector (XRD) Arrays Using the Methods of Backus and Gilbert

The generalized method of Backus and Gilbert (BG) is described and applied to the inverse problem of obtaining spectra from a 5-channel, filtered array of x-ray detectors (XRD's). This diagnostic is routinely fielded on the Z facility at Sandia National Laboratories to study soft x-ray photons ({le}2300 eV), emitted by high density Z-pinch plasmas. The BG method defines spectral resolution limits on the system of response functions that are in good agreement with the unfold method currently in use. The resolution so defined is independent of the source spectrum. For noise-free, simulated data the BG approximating function is also in reasonable agreement with the source spectrum (150 eV black-body) and the unfold. This function may be used as an initial trial function for iterative methods or a regularization model

Suppression of electron emission from metal electrodes : LDRD 28771 final report.

This research consisted of testing surface treatment processes for stainless steel and aluminum for the purpose of suppressing electron emission over large surface areas to improve the pulsed high voltage hold-off capabilities of these metals. Improvements to hold-off would be beneficial to the operation of the vacuum-insulator grading rings and final self-magnetically insulated transmission line on the ZR-upgrade machine and other pulsed power applications such as flash radiograph and pulsed-microwave machines. The treatments tested for stainless steel include the Z-protocol (chemical polish, HVFF, and gold coating), pulsed E-beam surface treatments by IHCE, Russia, and chromium oxide coatings. Treatments for aluminum were anodized and polymer coatings. Breakdown thresholds also were measured for a range of surface finishes and gap distances. The study found that: (1.) Electrical conditioning and solvent cleaning in a filtered air environment each improve HV hold-off 30%. (2.) Anodized coatings on aluminum give a factor of two improvement in high voltage hold-off. However, anodized aluminum loses this improvement when the damage is severe. Chromium oxide coatings on stainless steel give a 40% and 20% improvement in hold-off before and after damage from many arcs. (3.) Bare aluminum gives similar hold-off for surface roughness, R{sub a}, ranging from 0.08 to 3.2 {micro}m. (4.) The various EBEST surfaces tested give high voltage hold-off a factor of two better than typical machined and similar to R{sub a} = 0.05 {micro}m polished stainless steel surfaces. (5.) For gaps > 2 mm the hold-off voltage increases as the square root of the gap for bare metal surfaces. This is inconsistent with the accepted model for metals that involves E-field induced electron emission from dielectric inclusions. Micro-particles accelerated across the gap during the voltage pulse give the observed voltage dependence. However the similarity in observed breakdown times for large and small gaps places a requirement that the particles be of molecular size. This makes accelerated micro-particle induced breakdown seem improbable also

MHD Modeling of Conductors at Ultra-High Current Density

In conjunction with ongoing high-current experiments on Sandia National Laboratories' Z accelerator, the authors have revisited a problem first described in detail by Heinz Knoepfel. Unlike the 1-Tesla MITLs of pulsed power accelerators used to produce intense particle beams, Z's disc transmission line (downstream of the current addition) is in a 100--1,200 Tesla regime, so its conductors cannot be modeled simply as static infinite conductivity boundaries. Using the MHD code MACH2 they have been investigating the conductor hydrodynamics, characterizing the joule heating, magnetic field diffusion, and material deformation, pressure, and velocity over a range of current densities, current rise-times, and conductor materials. Three purposes of this work are (1) to quantify power flow losses owing to ultra-high magnetic fields, (2) to model the response of VISAR diagnostic samples in various configurations on Z, and (3) to incorporate the most appropriate equation of state and conductivity models into the MHD computations. Certain features are strongly dependent on the details of the conductivity model

Design, Construction, and Operation of a Fast Rise Time, High Voltage Pulse Generator

U of I OnlyRestricted to UIUC communit

Insentropic compression of solid using pulsed magnetic loading

Shock loading techniques are often used to determine material response along a specific pressure loading curve referred to as the Hugoniot. However, many technological and scientific applications require accurate determination of dynamic material response that is off-Hugoniot, covering large regions of the equation-of-state surface. Unloading measurements from the shocked state provide off-Hugoniot information, but experimental techniques for measuring compressive off-Hugoniot response have been limited. A new pulsed magnetic loading technique is presented which provides previously unavailable information on isentropic loading of materials to pressures of several hundred kbar. This smoothly increasing pressure loading provides a good approximation to the high-pressure material isentrope centered at ambient conditions. The approach uses high current densities to create ramped magnetic loading to a few hundred kbar over time intervals of 100--200 ns. The method has successfully determined the isentropic mechanical response of copper to about 200 kbar and has been used to evaluate the kinetics of the alpha-epsilon phase transition occurring in iron at 130 kbar. With refinements in progress, the method shows promise for performing isentropic compression experiments to multi-Mbar pressures

High current, 0.5-MA, fast, 100-ns, linear transformer driver experiments

The linear transformer driver (LTD) is a new method for constructing high current, high-voltage pulsed accelerators. The salient feature of the approach is switching and inductively adding the pulses at low voltage straight out of the capacitors through low inductance transfer and soft iron core isolation. Sandia National Laboratories are actively pursuing the development of a new class of accelerator based on the LTD technology. Presently, the high current LTD experimental research is concentrated on two aspects: first, to study the repetition rate capabilities, reliability, reproducibility of the output pulses, switch prefires, jitter, electrical power and energy efficiency, and lifetime measurements of the cavity active components; second, to study how a multicavity linear array performs in a voltage adder configuration relative to current transmission, energy and power addition, and wall plug to output pulse electrical efficiency. Here we report the repetition rate and lifetime studies performed in the Sandia High Current LTD Laboratory. We first utilized the prototype ∼0.4-MA, LTD I cavity which could be reliably operated up to ±90-kV capacitor charging. Later we obtained an improved 0.5-MA, LTD II version that can be operated at ±100  kV maximum charging voltage. The experimental results presented here were obtained with both cavities and pertain to evaluating the maximum achievable repetition rate and LTD cavity performance. The voltage adder experiments with a series of double sized cavities (1 MA, ±100  kV) will be reported in future publications

Integration of MHD load models with circuit representations the Z generator.

MHD models of imploding loads fielded on the Z accelerator are typically driven by reduced or simplified circuit representations of the generator. The performance of many of the imploding loads is critically dependent on the current and power delivered to them, so may be strongly influenced by the generators response to their implosion. Current losses diagnosed in the transmission lines approaching the load are further known to limit the energy delivery, while exhibiting some load dependence. Through comparing the convolute performance of a wide variety of short pulse Z loads we parameterize a convolute loss resistance applicable between different experiments. We incorporate this, and other current loss terms into a transmission line representation of the Z vacuum section. We then apply this model to study the current delivery to a wide variety of wire array and MagLif style liner loads

Integration of MHD load models with circuit representations the Z generator.

MHD models of imploding loads fielded on the Z accelerator are typically driven by reduced or simplified circuit representations of the generator. The performance of many of the imploding loads is critically dependent on the current and power delivered to them, so may be strongly influenced by the generators response to their implosion. Current losses diagnosed in the transmission lines approaching the load are further known to limit the energy delivery, while exhibiting some load dependence. Through comparing the convolute performance of a wide variety of short pulse Z loads we parameterize a convolute loss resistance applicable between different experiments. We incorporate this, and other current loss terms into a transmission line representation of the Z vacuum section. We then apply this model to study the current delivery to a wide variety of wire array and MagLif style liner loads