Inverse liner Z-pinch: An experimental pulsed power platform for studying radiative shocks

We present results from experiments to study radiative shocks using the “inverse liner Z-pinch” experimental platform on the MAGPIE pulsed power facility (1.4 MA in 240 ns) at Imperial College London in the UK. In this experimental configuration, current is discharged through a thin-walled metal tube (a liner) embedded in a gas-fill. Current then returns through a central post, generating a strong (~40 Tesla) toroidal magnetic field within the liner. This drives a cylindrically symmetric, radially expanding radiative shock in to the gas surrounding the liner.

This experimental setup offers excellent diagnostic access and allows shocks to propagate freely for several centimeters. Multi-frame optical self-emission imaging, laser interferometry, optical emission spectrometry and magnetic probes were used to probe the plasma conditions and shock dynamics. Experiments were performed in Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe at pressures of 1-50 mbar, while maintaining a constant mass density to produce similar shock hydrodynamics. This new configuration for producing radiative shocks provides a unique platform for numerical validation and laboratory astrophysics applications.