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(EXP4/14) Recent Efficiency Improvements and Experimental Results on the Repetitive Compact Toroid Accelerator at UC Davis

K. L. Baker¹⁾, D. Q. Hwang¹⁾, R. D. Horton¹⁾, R. W. Evans¹⁾, H. S. McLean²⁾, S. D. Terry^3)
 
1) Department of Applied Science, University of California at Davis, Livermore, CA
²⁾ Present Address: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA
³⁾ Present Address: University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin

Abstract.  This article reports on the acceleration dynamics of a compact toroid plasma configuration in a background hydrogen gas. The acceleration dynamics are investigated experimentally using magnetic probes and chordal interferometry. These measurements are then compared to two-dimensional simulations that show good agreement with experiments. The experimental measurements indicate that the velocity and field strength initially increase as a function of accelerator voltage, however, at higher voltages the compact toroid velocity ceases to increase with increased accelerator voltage. In our investigation, we examine the ``blowby'' effect along with additional processes such as mass accumulation and charge exchange as potential mechanisms contributing to the stagnation of the compact toroid's velocity.

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