Electrical conduction in exploded segmented wires

Recent work by Me-Bar and Harel, intended to characterize the conduction ch aracteristics of exploding segmented wires, is extended. A set of experimen ts on conductors composed of various materials and in various geometries is undertaken. The experimental work is complemented by two-dimensional calcu lations in which the magnetic diffusion equation is solved for the problems at hand. Results from these calculations are used to explain the behavior observed in the experiments. It is also observed from the calculations that different results for segmented wins might be obtained if the plasma, resu lting from partial explosion of the wins, is confined radially around the w ire. A set of experiments to test this contention is undertaken, and produc es results in good qualitative agreement with the theoretical predictions. Physical reasons for the observed behavior, as well as possible methods for ameliorating undesired effects, are indicated. [S0021-8979(98)07521-5].