On models of pulse power storage and forming lines

The design of nanosecond high-current generators is usually one of three schemes: a high voltage microsec- ond pulse voltage generator and pulse forming line; a relatively low-voltage pulse voltage generator and inductive energy storage in vacuum; or the switch- ing of energy into a load with the help of a plasma- erosion opening switch. The use of an inductive stor- age (IS) of energy with an electro-explosive opening switch (EEOS) allows charging of a pulse forming line in about 100 ns; this ensures insulation of high electri- cal strength and reduces overall dimensions and weight of the line. Optimisation of various designs that include an EEOS is usually performed by examining a large number of experimental data for RLC circuit models. We consider a theoretical RLC-circuit model of a particular device, the magnetic-flux compression gen- erator (MCG). The energy conversion in the IS circuit occurs in two stages. Initially, the energy is stored in the inductance, with a partial loss for fuse heating; this stage is simultaneously one of heating and of accumu- lation of magnetic energy. At the second stage, the fuse resistance is determined mainly by the density of expanding metal and grows by a few orders of magni- tude in a short time (explosion stage), when the mag- netic field energy of increasing power is released into the fast-rising resistance of the fuse. We discuss the MCG detonation procedure, how the energy efficiency varies with respect to inductance and the EEOS pa- rameters, and how the energy is released to the load.