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Measurement of plasma parameters during the ablation phase in the Z-pinch is crucial for investigating the dynamic behaviors. In this study, optical Thomson scattering was employed to measure the temperature and velocity of the ablation plasma in a double-wire Z-pinch. The scattering spectra profiles were fitted using a model that considered the velocity distribution. The experimental results revealed the energy evolution of ablation plasma, the establishment of the global magnetic field and the development of axial non-uniformities. The precursor plasma was found to play a key role in strengthening the global magnetic field. A resistive layer near the wire core with a size of 1.5 mm was observed in the ablation plasma after the precursor plasma column formed. The plasma underwent rapid heating in this layer, the electron temperature rises from 17 eV to 22 eV. Upon leaving this layer, electron the temperature is stable at around 22 eV. The radial distribution of the ablation rate increases and decreases, indicating the axial motion of the ablation plasma, which could be caused by the tilt motion of the stream and the secondary modulation of the natural wavelength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underwater electrical wire explosion (UEWE) is an efficient source of underwater shock waves (SWs). In order to efficiently simulate the interaction between the UEWE SW and structures, a coupled model that includes the electric circuit, the exploding wire and the surrounding water is established based on user-subroutines provided by the commercial explicit dynamics software ANSYS AUTODYN. The modeling starts from room temperature by using the tabular wide-range metal equation of state (EOS) and conductivity data. Experimental validation is performed with copper wires exploded by a μ s-timescale pulsed discharge. The numerical results show satisfactory consistency with experiments in terms of the current and voltage waveforms, the wire expansion trajectory, the evolution of SW front, the interaction between SW and electrodes and the SW pressure profiles. The main discrepancy lies in the SW amplitude that is ∼20% higher in the calculation and the possible reasons are discussed in detail. Based on this approach and with proper modifications to the metal EOS and conductivity data, the interaction between UEWE SWs and structures can be efficiently modeled in 2D and 3D for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]