TRIGGERING OF RADIAL MULTICHANNEL PSEUDOSPARK SWITCHES BY A PULSED HOLLOW-CATHODE DISCHARGE

We report on a special trigger discharge for pulsed high-power pseudos park switches, The switch used is a radial three-channel pseudospark s witch. For triggering, a cylindrical trigger electrode is inserted int o the hollow cathode of the main gap, This electrode acts as a hollow cathode for the de preionization, while the hollow cathode of the main gap is the anode, A negative high-voltage pulse supplied to the trigg er electrode ignites the main discharge, We report the temporal evolut ion of the trigger discharge observed with a fast camera. This trigger method gives an excellent current distribution among the discharge ch annels, as can be proven by fast photography, The switch has a delay o f 220 ns and a jitter of 15 ns.