PPPS-2013: Interactions of plasma ablation flows in wire array Z-pinches

Summary form only given. We present the results of experiments investigating the interactions of ablations streams in Aluminium and tungsten wire array z-pinches. These experiments were carried out on the 1.4MA, 240ns MAGPIE generator at Imperial College London. The primary diagnostic used for this study was an end-on aligned, two colour, Mach-Zehnder imaging interferometer. In aluminium arrays, the interactions of the ablation flows produces a dense network of oblique shocks. Measurements of the geometry of these shocks allows us to place limits on the plasma parameters of the flows. In tungsten arrays the data shows a prolonged period of collisionless flow. No shock structures were observed, the flow densities varied smoothly between the ablation streams and the inter-wire regions.