Experimental and theoretical investigation of the gas embedded Z-pinch

The paper reports observations of a sub-millimetre diameter Z-pinch discharge initiated in hydrogen gas at high pressure (0.33-2 bar) and powered by a fast rising current (dI/dt approx.= 1 kA·ns-1). The conditions for heating the pinch ohmically under pressure balance are established by using a small preheat current of short duration (5 kA, 70 ns). Measurements of the radial density profiles of the electrons in the pinch and the surrounding neutral gas are presented. The peak electron temperature in the pinch is estimated from the soft X-ray emission. The observations show that during the preheat phase, when there is no equilibrium, the plasma column expands radially and drives a shock into the neutral gas. This results in an increase of the neutral gas density in a thin layer surrounding the pinch. When the main current is applied, a pinch in radial equilibrium, with a radius of about 400 μm and peak electron density on axis (2.5x1024m-3 at 0.33 bar), is observed. The estimated peak electron temperature on axis (69 eV at 0.33 bar) is about twice the Bennett temperature. An increase of the line density is observed during the equilibrium. This is ascribed to a flow of neutral particles from the high density layer surrounding the pinch column. The equilibrium is destroyed by an m=1 instability which grows from a helical perturbation on axis. The experimental results are compared with calculations based on ideal MHD stability theory, and it is shown that the existence of a centrally peaked current density profile can be inferred from the nature of the observed instabilities. An explanation is offered for the absence of the m=0 mode, on the basis of cooling of the outer region of the plasma. (author). 23 refs, 10 figs, 4 tabs