First Experiments and Radiographs on the MegaJOuLe Neutron Imaging Radiography (MJOLNIR) Dense Plasma Focus

Schmidt, A.; Anaya, E.; Anderson, M.; Angus, J.; Chapman, S.; Cooper, C.; Drury, O.; Goyon, C.; Hawkins, S.; Higginson, D. P.; Holod, I.; Koh, E.; Link, A.; Max, D.; McMahon, M.; Mitrani, J.; Podpaly, Y.; Povilus, A.; Van Lue, D.

doi:10.1109/tps.2021.3106313

Title: First Experiments and Radiographs on the MegaJOuLe Neutron Imaging Radiography (MJOLNIR) Dense Plasma Focus

Journal Article · Fri Sep 03 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1109/tps.2021.3106313· OSTI ID:1860821

^[1]; Anaya, E. ^[1];

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^[1]; Chapman, S. ^[1]; Cooper, C. ^[1]; Drury, O. ^[1];

^[1]; Hawkins, S. ^[1];

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^[1]; Koh, E. ^[1];

^[1]; Max, D. ^[2]; McMahon, M. ^[1]; Mitrani, J. ^[1]; Podpaly, Y. ^[1]; Povilus, A. ^[1]; Van Lue, D. ^[1]

Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Nevada National Security Site, North Las Vegas, NV (United States)

We report a dense plasma focus (DPF) is a relatively compact coaxial plasma gun, which completes its discharge as a Z-pinch. These devices are designed to operate at a variety of scales to produce short (<100 ns) pulses of ions, X-rays, and/or neutrons. LLNL recently constructed and brought into operation a new device, the MegaJOuLe Neutron Imaging Radiography (MJOLNIR) DPF, which is designed for radiography and high-yield operations. This device has been commissioned and has achieved neutron yields of up to 3.8E11 neutrons/pulse at 2.5-MA peak current while operating at up to 1 MJ of stored energy in its original pulsed power configuration. MJOLNIR is equipped with a wide range of diagnostics, including nuclear activation detectors, neutron time-of-flight (nToF) detectors, a fast-framing camera, optical light gates, and a time-gated neutron and X-ray imager. LLNL also runs unique particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations of DPF discharges in the Chicago code and has gained significant insight into the various physical factors that influence neutron yield. MJOLNIR is one of the first DPFs whose design and continual upgrades are heavily influenced by model predictions. In this article, we describe insights from modeling, device operation, and recent results. Comparisons between modeling predictions and measurements, as well as X-ray and neutron images are presented.

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Research Organization:: Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Nevada National Security Site/Mission Support and Test Services LLC (NNSS/MSTS), North Las Vegas, NV (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC52-07NA27344

OSTI ID:: 1860821

Report Number(s):: LLNL-JRNL-827704; 1029747; TRN: US2305439

Journal Information:: IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol. 49, Issue 11; ISSN 0093-3813

Publisher:: IEEECopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
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plasma diagnostics
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plasma simulation
pulse power systems
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Title: First Experiments and Radiographs on the MegaJOuLe Neutron Imaging Radiography (MJOLNIR) Dense Plasma Focus

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