Characteristics of fast deuteron sources generated in a dense plasma focus

The paper characterizes sources of the fast deuterons which can produce the D–D fusion neutrons. Two pinhole cameras, the axial one and the slant one (oriented at 0° and 60° in relation to the z-axis), were equipped with solid-state nuclear track detectors and applied to investigate the fast deuterons of energies about 100 keV, which produce small quasi-circular track spots of diameters ranging (1–3) mm. They are often observed in plasma-focus shots with higher neutron yields, when they constitute a part of the recorded ion images in a form of azimuthal arcs and/or radial strips. An analysis of an influence of the global magnetic field, which acts along the fast deuteron trajectories, made it possible to determinate the deuteron sources localization, also outside the dense plasma column. The recorded spatial distribution of the fast deuterons, their temporal correlation with disruptions of the ordered plasma structures inside and outside the pinch column, and a regular evolution of the energy of fast deuterons—indicate their strong interconnection and the link with filamentary structure of the current flow.