Measuring shock velocity and the turnover to detonation within explosives using a 122 GHz Homodyne Interferometer

Experiments were performed utilising a continuous wave, constant frequency 122 GHz doppler radar system to record the shock to detonation transition (SDT) within an explosive. The doppler radar diagnostic can be used to record the velocity of a moving surface but can also provide a non-invasive measurement of the velocity of shock and detonation waves propagating through a material. The experiments used gap test-like configurations to generate shock inputs into a TATB-based explosive and the point of turnover to detonation was derived from the velocity history of the evolving wave front. These configurations generate non-planar shock waves with multiple different velocities being present in the target, which must be considered in the data analysis.

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