X-ray diagnostics of plasma generated during collisions of plasma flows

Abstract

Diagnostics of the high-temperature plasma formed during plasma flow collisions by comparing observable intensities of various x-ray spectral lines to accurate kinetic calculation results is discussed. Kinetic calculations have shown that using the resonance line intensity ratio of He-like Ne IX and 3p–2s Li-like Ne VIII is the most convenient way to measure neon-containing plasma temperatures. Experimental research results of the pulse soft (0.1–1 keV) x-ray source with a total energy up to 50 kJ are shown. The radiation pulse is generated during a head-on collision of two low-temperature plasma flows immersed in a longitudinal magnetic field. The plasma flows with the velocities up to 4 × 107 cm/s and total energy up to 200 kJ are formed by a coaxial accelerator operating in pulse gas puffing mode. Neon was used as an inflating gas. Electron temperature for a plasma containing Ne ions is about 160–170 eV. Electron density around the collision region is in the range 1016–1017 cm−3.