An Acceleration Mechanism for Neutron Production In Z-Pinch Discharges

摘要

A model has been developed for the acceleration of deuterons in the tightly compressed column of a z-pinch discharge, in particular that of a plasma focus discharge. It was assumed that an annular current distribution undergoes a rapidly contracting transition to an axially peaked distribution, and the resulting crossed fields, B sub theta and E sub z, were used to calculate deuteron trajectories in the plasma. These results show how a significant number of ions can be accelerated to high energies and that they have a large value for their time-averaged axial velocities. The orbiting motion in the magnetic field produces an anisotropy distribution of collision velocities, and a neutron-production model based upon nuclear collisions by these deuterons accounts for the measured characteristics of neutron energies, neutron fluxes, and rates of neutron production. (Author)