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Parameters affecting the runtime and jitter of a laser triggered gas switch have been studied. Experiments tested a variety of switch parameters including percentage of selfbreak and switch pressure. The effects of laser beam parameters were also considered, including focal length, laser energy, laser spark length, and laser wavelength. Experiments were performed on the Tiger pulsed power machine. Measurements were taken on a spark gap switch built from the trigger section of a Rimfire switch. A Marx bank consisting of 32, 3.1 uF, capacitors that fed into a 7 nF intermediate storage capacitor was used to drive the switch into a 4 Ω resistive load. The test switch was pressurized to 306 kPa (30 psig) with SF 6 and operated near 1 MV. A New Wave Tempest Nd:YAG laser was used to trigger breakdown of the switch. The laser was focused at the mid-gap between the switch electrodes using lenses with focal lengths between 30 cm and 100 cm. Focused laser energy in the switch ranged from <5 mJ to 80 mJ. The effects of switch and laser beam parameters on the runtime and jitter of a laser triggered gas switch are presented. The end goal of the research is to determine optimal conditions for improved switch performance.

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A ferroelectric atmospheric pressure plasma source has been characterized. An RF electric field, with a frequency between 190 and 250 kHz, is employed to create plasma on the surface of a ferroelectric disk at atmospheric pressure. Average power consumption was measured, and images of plasma formation during an RF cycle have been collected. Excited neutrals from the ferroelectric and electrode, along with component species of the background gas, have been identified in optical emission spectra. Additionally, the electron temperature has been found to be ∼2.3 eV from atomic Boltzmann plots of neutral Ag I lines. Breakdown voltage and heavy-particle temperature are also presented. Additionally, the experiments indicate that piezoelectric resonance effects reduced the required applied voltage to induce breakdown.