Combined Properties of Al/Ni Reactive Multilayer Films During High-Rate Heating Using a Pulse of Current

Abstract

Abstract We use pulses of current to investigate the combined properties of Al/Ni multilayer films under high-rate heating by measuring current-voltage waveforms and the flyer velocity. Explosion occurs earlier in the Al/Ni multilayer foil than in the Al and Ni films, suggesting that the addition of Al/Ni affects the electrical exploding process, which is not controlled solely by resistance. The experiments indicates that the differences between the physical properties of the Al and Ni films is a factor to causing higher plasma electron temperature and absorb more electrical energy than the single Al or Ni film. The flyer velocity of the Al/Ni multilayer film is much lower than that of the Al film due to the high adiabatic index of Ni.