EXPERIMENTAL 100,000 JOULE CAPACITOR BANK FOR PLASMA RESEARCH

An experimental 100,000 joule capacitor bank was constructed for plasma research. The capacitor bank consisted of five sets of eight high-voltage, low- inductance capacitors connected in parallel. Two arrangements were possible: a circularly symmetric arrangement using co-axial cable connections and a linearly symmetric arrangement using transmission-line connections. Both capacitor bank arrangements were built and used. A combined system offered the most compact arrangement. Airgap switches were selected for geometrical reasons. Two timing problems were solved: first, firing the bank with an adjustable time delay against a zero pulse, and seccnd, an adjustable delay between the firings of the bank sections to vary the shape of the discharge current. (M.C.G.)