A compact sub-microsecond, high current generator for wire explosion experiments and its use for first X-pinch experiments

The PIAF generator was designed for low total energy and high energy density experiments with liners, X-pinch or fiber Z-pinch loads. The generator scheme is based on an LC circuit including six NWL 180 nF - 50 kV capacitors storing up to 1.3 kJ. The capacitors are connected in parallel to a single multi-spark switch designed to operate at atmospheric pressure. The switch allows reaching a time delay between the trigger pulse and the current pulse of less than 80 ns and has a jitter of 6 ns. The total inductance without a load compartment was optimized to be as low as 16 nH. Short circuit tests at 40 kV charging voltage with a 6 nH inductive load, demonstrated that the current of 250 kA was reached on PIAF with a 180 ns rise-time. The generator dimensions are 660×660×490 mm with a total mass of less than 100 kg. Description of the PIAF generator and the first experimental results on PIAF with an X-pinch type load are reported. Typically, a 100 microns point-like x-ray source with less than 2 ns time long in the region above 1 keV has been realized. The estimated total radiated energy in this spectral region was at least 50-100 mJ.