Some Key Parameters for Rectangular Caliber Railgun System

Electromagnetic railgun is one of the most important new concept weapons. Some key parameters of a rectangular caliber railgun system—the thickness of the armature $d_{0}$ , the width of the caliber $X$ , the height of the caliber $Y$ , the minimum length of the rail $L$ , the amplitude of current $I$ , and the pulsewidth of current $t_{0}$ —are studied in this paper. By introducing the current carrier margin coefficient named $\alpha$ , the ratio of armature thickness to railgun caliber width named $\beta$ , and the ratio of caliber height to caliber width named $\gamma$ , equations of some key parameters of the rectangular caliber railgun system are proposed. Based on analysis of the armature's electric heating capacity and mass, 0.7 is an appropriate value for $\alpha$ . Based on analysis of parameters of railguns, $\beta = 1/3$ and $\gamma \leq 1$ are appropriate for small and medium calibers, and $\beta and $\gamma = 1$ are appropriate for large calibers.