Development and diagnostics of a z-pinch plasma target

For the investigation of the interaction of fast heavy ion beams with hot matter, a beam-plasma experiment is set-up in the stripper region of the UNILAC at the GSI, Darmstadt. The target requirements are deduced from theoretical predictions of energy loss and charge state as well as from the features of the ion beam: fully ionized hydrogen plasma, cylindrical plasma geometry, electrons/area ≥ 1019/cm2, life time ≥ 15 ns. A z-pinch device which is adaptable to the accelerator structure, was designed and developed to meet these target specifications. The z-pinch discharge is investigated with electrical and optical diagnostics. The latter show that a uniform cylindrical plasma pinch is formed with a length of 20 cm and a diameter of > 5 mm