Small Fiber Z-Pinch As Tool For Studying Z-Pinch Physics.

Carbon fiber Z-pinch experiments have been performed in vacuum on a slow current generator (80 kA peak current, 850 ns quarter period). During the first 500 ns the discharge could be characterized as plasma-on-fiber. Short XUV pulses were emitted when coronal plasma reached a fiber. Each XUV pulse corresponded to the gradual fall of dI/dt and to the growth of voltage up to 10 kV. The reason for that is the rise of the term R+dL/dt up to 0.3 Ω. After 500 ns the discharge occurred mainly in the vapor of electrodes. The soft and hard X-ray radiation was generated as soon as an m=0 instability developed. At that time the voltage peak of up to 30 kV was detected. Although a carbon fiber is of a modest interest now, we believe it could provide a valuable data for Z-pinch physics. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]