Plasma and Beams Dynamics in PF-1000 Device under the Full-Scale Energy Storage

Plasma dynamics and radiation characteristics of the PF-1000 facility at its upper energy limit (≅ 1 MJ) were investigated by help of a number of diagnostics with ns temporal resolution. Special attention was paid to the temporal and spatial cross correlation between plasma, electron and ion beams dynamics as well as e/m radiation but in particular in relation to the neutron emission parameters. Results of these experiments are in favor of neutron emission model based on ion beam-plasma interaction with three important features: 1) plasma target is hot and confined during a few ''inertial confinement times''; 2) ions of the main part of the beam are magnetized and entrapped about the pinch plasma target for a longer period than the characteristic time of the plasma inductive storage system and accelerating diode existence; and 3) ion-ion collisions -- fusion and Coulomb ones -- are both responsible for neutron emission