Researches on preconditioned wire array Z pinches in Xi'an Jiaotong University

The dynamics of wire array Z pinches are greatly affected by the initial state of the wires, which can be preconditioned by a prepulse current. Recent advances in experimental research on preconditioned wire array Z pinches at Xi'an Jiaotong University are presented in this paper. Single-wire explosion experiments were carried out to check the state of the preconditioning and to obtain the current parameters needed for wire gasification. Double-wire explosion experiments were conducted to investigate the temporal evolution of the density distribution of the two gasified wires. Based on the results of these experiments, a double-pulse Z-pinch facility, Qin-1, in which a 10 kA prepulse current was coupled with the 0.8 MA main current was designed and constructed. Wire arrays of different wire materials, including silver and tungsten, can be preconditioned by the prepulse current to a gaseous state. Implosion of the two preconditioned aluminum wires exhibited no ablation and little trailing mass.