MAGPIE
Encyclopedia
MAGPIE stands for Mega Ampere Generator for Plasma Implosion Experiments and is a pulsed power
generator based at Imperial College London
, United Kingdom. The generator was originally designed to produce a current pulse with a maximum of 1.8 million Amperes in 240 nanoseconds (150 nanoseconds rise time). At present the machine is operated with a maximum current of approximately 1.4 million Amperes.
The generator consists of four voltage multipliers (Marx generator
s), each one containing 24 capacitors. At the maximum charging voltage of 100 kilo-Volts, an output voltage of 2.4 million Volts is produced and delivered into the load section.
MAGPIE is one of several similar pulsed power machines worldwide, of which the largest and most powerful is the Z-machine
at Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Pulsed power
Pulsed power is the term used to describe the science and technology of accumulating energy over a relatively long period of time and releasing it very quickly thus increasing the instantaneous power.-Overview:...
generator based at Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
, United Kingdom. The generator was originally designed to produce a current pulse with a maximum of 1.8 million Amperes in 240 nanoseconds (150 nanoseconds rise time). At present the machine is operated with a maximum current of approximately 1.4 million Amperes.
The generator consists of four voltage multipliers (Marx generator
Marx generator
A Marx generator is an electrical circuit first described by Erwin Otto Marx in 1924. Its purpose is to generate a high-voltage pulse. Marx generators are often used to simulate the effects of lightning on power line gear and aviation equipment....
s), each one containing 24 capacitors. At the maximum charging voltage of 100 kilo-Volts, an output voltage of 2.4 million Volts is produced and delivered into the load section.
MAGPIE is one of several similar pulsed power machines worldwide, of which the largest and most powerful is the Z-machine
Z machine
The Z machine is the largest X-ray generator in the world and is designed to test materials in conditions of extreme temperature and pressure. Operated by Sandia National Laboratories, it gathers data to aid in computer modeling of nuclear weapons...
at Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico.