[en] A two-electrode gas switch with a self-breakdown voltage of 100 kV was operated at a pulse-repetition rate of 100 Hz with bursts up to 10 seconds in duration. The output of a pulse transformer provided the (1 - cos wt) waveform which charged the switch in about one-half millisecond. The switch discharged with a peak current of about 10 kA and a total charge transfer of about 10 mC into a damped LC circuit. A continuous purge of air through the interelectrode spacing enabled the switch to recover its breakdown voltage between discharges. Flow rates up to 35 SCFM were employed. This paper discusses the dependence of switch jitter and waveform reproducibility on air-flow rate

[en] The nation's electric power system would be subject to induced surges in the event of a high altitude nuclear burst. The HEMP would be coupled to overhead power lines and cause severe overvoltage to components connected to the line. This paper discusses the design of pulsed power equipment needed to simulate this induced EMP. A facility is described which is capable of testing the vulnerability of components by applying appropriate voltage and current waveforms. The pulser can provide waveforms under a variety of test conditions to meet the requirements of different types of components. A 3-5 MV Marx pulser is described. It has the capability of generating a fast rising voltage followed by two distinct exponential decays. The testing of components, charged with their normal voltage is also described

No abstract available

[en] The theoretical designs for tape-wound, step-up transformers reported by Freeman and Bostick have been converted into physical units that have been subjected to experimental testing. The physical design of these transformers is relatively simple and uses common materials. The winding is composed of copper foil and Kapton film. The impregnating fluids have been fluorinert, propylene carbonate, and propylene carbonate with iron chloride. While several transformers were tested using a capacitor bank as the driver, most experiments have been driven with the 13.2-cm-wide by 52.8-cm-long plate generator. In these tests, both passive and active loads, ranging in impedance from 1.3 Ω to 200 Ω, have been energized. Reliable operation to 500 kV has been achieved with an associated voltage stress of ≤1.6 MV/cm. Effective coupling coefficients in the range of 0.85-0.92 have been measured. In this paper results of this testing and prospects for further improvement are presented

[en] The DARHT Facility is being designed at Los Alamos National Laboratory to produce high resolution flash radiographs of hydrodynamic experiments. Two linear induction accelerators (LIA), each in the range of 16 to 20 MeV, will be used to produce intense bremsstrahlung X-ray pulses of short duration (60 ns flat top). Each LIA will produce a 3 kA, high brightness, electron beam using a 4 MeV injector and a series of 250 kV induction cells. Technology demonstration of key accelerator subsystems is under progress at the DARHT Integrated Test Stand (ITS). The eight inductions cells present in the ITS are driven by a Maxwell prototype Induction Cell Pulsed Power Supply (ICPPS) which provides 250 kV, 70ns pulses via four Blumleins. Each Blumlein drives two cells and is triggered using independently controlled trigger units. This turnkey DARHT Trigger System, consisting of four separate trigger units, provides 200 kV trigger pulses with low jitter and fast rise time to each of the four Blumlein coaxial spark gaps. Details of the trigger system design and results obtained during extensive testing at Maxwell are described