Pressure range broadening for a plasma focus operation

Abstract

The effects of insulator sleeve length and anode length variation on the pressure range of neutron emission in a low energy plasma focus are investigated. It is found that the proper choice of the two parameters broadens the pressure range of the high neutron yield and hence improves the shot to shot reproducibility of the system. The experiment also demonstrates that the bulk of the neutrons are emitted from a region within 2 cm above the anode top and that, in turn, reflects on the nature of the dominant production mechanism.