Focusing of an explosive plasma expansion in a transverse magnetic field.

The dynamics of a laser ablation plasma expanding in an external magnetic field have been investigated with imaging interferometry and shadowgraphy. The diagnostics reveal a new interaction mechanism, namely, the redirection of the explosive plasma expansion into a converging flow. A comparison with three-dimensional ideal magnetohydrodynamic simulation results supports the observation that the efficient lateral plasma confinement causes the plasma to converge on the axis and initiate a directed flow. The resulting collimated flow propagates across the magnetic field in a kinetic regime, which cannot be modeled within the same framework.

Planar wire-array Z-pinch implosion dynamics and X-ray scaling at multiple-MA drive currents for a compact multisource hohlraum configuration.

An indirect drive configuration is proposed wherein multiple compact Z-pinch x-ray sources surround a secondary hohlraum. Planar compact wire arrays allow reduced primary hohlraum surface area compared to cylindrical loads. Implosions of planar arrays are studied at up to 15 TW x-ray power on Saturn with radiated yields exceeding the calculated kinetic energy, suggesting other heating paths. X-ray power and yield scaling studied from 1-6 MA motivates viewfactor modeling of four 6-MA planar arrays producing 90 eV radiation temperature in a secondary hohlraum.

Radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulation of plasma formed on a surface by a megagauss field.

Radiation magnetohydrodynamic modeling is used to study the plasma formed on the surface of a cylindrical metallic load, driven by megagauss magnetic field at the 1MA Zebra generator (University of Nevada, Reno). An ionized aluminum plasma is used to represent the "core-corona" behavior in which a heterogeneous Z-pinch consists of a hot low-density corona surrounding a dense low-temperature core. The radiation dynamics model included simultaneously a self-consistent treatment of both the opaque and transparent plasma regions in a corona. For the parameters of this experiment, the boundary of the opaque plasma region emits the major radiation power with Planckian black-body spectrum in the extreme ultraviolet corresponding to an equilibrium temperature of 16 eV. The radiation heat transport significantly exceeds the electron and ion kinetic heat transport in the outer layers of the opaque plasma. Electromagnetic field energy is partly radiated (13%) and partly deposited into inner corona and core regions (87%). Surface temperature estimates are sensitive to the radiation effects, but the surface motion in response to pressure and magnetic forces is not. The general results of the present investigation are applicable to the liner compression experiments at multi-MA long-pulse current accelerators such as Atlas and Shiva Star. Also the radiation magnetohydrodynamic model discussed in the paper may be useful for understanding key effects of wire array implosion dynamics.

Simulations of a hydrogen-filled capillary discharge waveguide.

A one-dimensional dissipative magnetohydrodynamics code is used to investigate the discharge dynamics of a waveguide for high-intensity laser pulses: the gas-filled capillary discharge waveguide. Simulations are performed for the conditions of a recent experimental measurement of the electron density profile in hydrogen-filled capillaries [D. J. Spence et al., Phys. Rev. E 63, 015401 (R) (2001)], and are found to be in good agreement with those results. The evolution of the discharge in this device is found to be substantially different to that found in Z-pinch capillary discharges, owing to the fact that the plasma pressure is always much higher than the magnetic pressure. Three stages of the capillary discharge are identified. During the last of these the distribution of plasma inside the capillary is determined by the balance between ohmic heating, and cooling due to electron heat conduction. A simple analytical model of the discharge during the final stage is presented, and shown to be in good agreement with the magnetohydrodynamic simulations.

Compact hohlraum configuration with parallel planar-wire-array x-ray sources at the 1.7-MA Zebra generator.

A compact Z-pinch x-ray hohlraum design with parallel-driven x-ray sources is experimentally demonstrated in a configuration with a central target and tailored shine shields at a 1.7-MA Zebra generator. Driving in parallel two magnetically decoupled compact double-planar-wire Z pinches has demonstrated the generation of synchronized x-ray bursts that correlated well in time with x-ray emission from a central reemission target. Good agreement between simulated and measured hohlraum radiation temperature of the central target is shown. The advantages of compact hohlraum design applications for multi-MA facilities are discussed.

Wire ablation dynamics model and its application to imploding wire arrays of different geometries.

The paper presents an extended description of the amplified wire ablation dynamics model (WADM), which accounts in a single simulation for the processes of wire ablation and implosion of a wire array load of arbitrary geometry and wire material composition. To investigate the role of wire ablation effects, the implosions of cylindrical and planar wire array loads at the university based generators Cobra (Cornell University) and Zebra (University of Nevada, Reno) have been analyzed. The analysis of the experimental data shows that the wire mass ablation rate can be described as a function of the current through the wire and some coefficient defined by the wire material properties. The aluminum wires were found to ablate with the highest rate, while the copper ablation is the slowest one. The lower wire ablation rate results in a higher inward velocity of the ablated plasma, a higher rate of the energy coupling with the ablated plasma, and a more significant delay of implosion for a heavy load due to the ablation effects, which manifest the most in a cylindrical array configuration and almost vanish in a single-planar array configuration. The WADM is an efficient tool suited for wire array load design and optimization in wide parameter ranges, including the loads with specific properties needed for the inertial confinement fusion research and laboratory astrophysics experiments. The data output from the WADM simulation can be used to simplify the radiation magnetohydrodynamics modeling of the wire array plasma.

X-ray absorption spectroscopy of aluminum z-pinch plasma with tungsten backlighter planar wire array source.

Absorption features from K-shell aluminum z-pinch plasmas have recently been studied on Zebra, the 1.7 MA pulse power generator at the Nevada Terawatt Facility. In particular, tungsten plasma has been used as a semi-backlighter source in the generation of aluminum K-shell absorption spectra by placing a single Al wire at or near the end of a single planar W array. All spectroscopic experimental results were recorded using a time-integrated, spatially resolved convex potassium hydrogen phthalate (KAP) crystal spectrometer. Other diagnostics used to study these plasmas included x-ray detectors, optical imaging, laser shadowgraphy, and time-gated and time-integrated x-ray pinhole imagers. Through comparisons with previous publications, Al K-shell absorption lines are shown to be from much lower electron temperature (∼10-40 eV) plasmas than emission spectra (∼350-500 eV).

Influence of induced axial magnetic field on plasma dynamics and radiative characteristics of Z pinches.

The influence of an induced axial magnetic field on plasma dynamics and radiative characteristics of Z pinches is investigated. An axial magnetic field was induced in a novel Z-pinch load: a double planar wire array with skewed wires (DPWAsk), which represents a planar wire array in an open magnetic configuration. The induced axial magnetic field suppressed magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor (MRT) instabilities (with m = 0 and m = 1 instability modes) in the Z-pinch plasma. The influence of the initial axial magnetic field on the structure of the plasma column at stagnation was manifested through the formation of a more uniform plasma column compared to a standard double planar wire array (DPWA) load [V. L. Kantsyrev et al., Phys. Plasmas 15, 030704 (2008)]. The DPWAsk load is characterized by suppression of MRT instabilities and by the formation of the sub-keV radiation pulse that occurs before the main x-ray peak. Gradients in plasma parameters along the cathode-anode gap were observed and analyzed for DPWAsk loads made from low atomic number Z (Al) and mid-Z (brass) wires.

Observation of >400-eV precursor plasmas from low-wire-number copper arrays at the 1-MA zebra facility.

Experiments with cylindrical copper wire arrays at the 1-MA Zebra facility show that high temperatures exist in the precursor plasmas formed when ablated wire array material accretes on the axis prior to the stagnation of a z pinch. In these experiments, the precursor radiated approximately 20% of the >1000 eV x-ray output, and time-resolved spectra show substantial emission from Cu L-shell lines. Modeling of the spectra shows an increase in temperature as the precursor forms, up to approximately 450 eV, after which the temperature decreases to approximately 220-320 eV until the main implosion.

X-ray diagnostics of imploding plasmas from planar wire arrays composed of Cu and few tracer Al wires on the 1MA pulsed power generator at UNR.

Tracer aluminum alloyed wires (Al5056) are used to provide additional information for x-ray diagnostics of implosions of Cu planar wire arrays (PWAs). Specifically, the analysis of combined PWA experiments using the extensive set of x-ray diagnostics is presented. In these experiments, which were conducted at the 1MA pulsed power generator at University of Nevada, Reno, the Z-pinch load consisted of several (eight) Cu alloyed (main material) and one to two Al alloyed (tracer) wires mounted in a single plane row or double parallel plane rows, single planar wire array (SPWA) or double planar wire array (DPWA), respectively. The analysis of x-ray spatially resolved spectra from the main material indicates the increase in the electron temperature T(e) near the cathode. In general, the axial gradients in T(e) are more pronounced for SPWA than for DPWA due to the more "columnlike" plasma formation for SPWA compared to "hot-spot-like" plasma formation for DPWA. In addition, x-ray spectra from tracer wires are studied, and estimated plasma parameters are compared with those from the main material. It is observed that the x-ray K-shell Al spectra manifest more opacity features for the case of SPWA with about 18% of Al mass (to the total load mass) compared to the case of DPWA with about 11% of Al mass. The analysis of time-gated spectra shows that the relative intensity of the most intense K-shell Al line, small before the x-ray burst, increases with time and peaks close to the maximum of the sub-keV signal.