Our picture of the week shows the Z-Machor of the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This highly complex system is one of the most powerful X -ray sources in the world. The electromagnetic pulses it produced are so strong that, despite an insulating tank made of deonized water, they create the flashes photographed here.
In order to generate its enormously energy-rich X-ray pulses, the Z machine uses an electr magnetic effect, the so-called Z-Pinch. It causes a plasma to contract when it is flowed through by strong streams. The resulting magnetic lorespower then puts together the plasma and heats it up strongly. This effect can be used to create intensive X -rays for material research, but also for experiments for core fusion.
In the middle of the Z machine there is a vacuum chamber of three meters in diameter, through which around 300 wafer-thin tungsten wires run through the cylindrical arrangement. For the tiny fraction of a second, a strong stream pulse with 20 million amps is directed through these wires. The fine tungsten wires suddenly evaporate and turn into a plasma. This is compressed by the Z-Pinch effect and also heats the wall of the vacuum chamber. This releases a short but intensive X -ray pulse of 290 terawatts of power. A terawatt corresponds to a billion kilowatts.
These extremely strong X-ray pulses are an important prerequisite for experiments for material research, such as the behavior of substances under extreme pressure and temperature conditions. The Z-Machine is also used for merger experiments. For this purpose, a small capsule with the merger fuel made of deuterium and tritium is placed in the middle of the vacuum chamber. Due to the radiation pressure of the X -ray pulse, the fusion capsule is pressed together for a brief moment to a fraction of its original size and heated up heavily. This triggers the nuclear fusion of the hydrogen isotopes.