250?kA compact linear transformer driver for wire array span class="aps-inline-formula"math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"miz/mi/math/span-pinch loads

摘要

We present the application of a short rise ($ensuremath{sim}150ext{ }ext{ }mathrm{ns}$) 250 kA linear transformer driver (LTD) to wire array $z$-pinch loads for the first time. The generator is a modification of a previous driver in which a new conical power feed provides a low inductance coupling to wire loads. Performance of the new design using both short circuit and plasma loads is presented and discussed. The final design delivers $ensuremath{sim}200ext{ }ext{ }mathrm{kA}$ to a wire array load which is in good agreement with SCREAMER calculations using a simplified representative circuit. Example results demonstrate successful experiments using cylindrical, conical, and inverse wire arrays as well as previously published work on $x$-pinch loads.