Rise Time of a Vacuum Gap Triggered by an Exploding Wire

Detailed investigations on the rise time (tr) of a coaxial vacuum gap, triggered by exploding wire (EW) plasma have been reported for the first time. The tr behavior, studied as a function of energy (Ee) put into EW, exhibits ripples at low gap voltages. At large gap voltages, the ripples disappear resulting in a flat characteristic making tr independent of Ee. This complex tr behavior has been qualitatively explained on the basis of varying proportions between metallic clumps and metallic vapor, and change in the degree of ionization in the EW plasma, as Ee is varied.