Fast Vacuum Isolation Valve for Debris Mitigation

Nuclear weapons effects (NWE) testing and other experiments conducted with plasma radiation sources require that test articles be exposed to radiation but protected from fast moving debris generated by a high power source event. Solid barriers or membranes are unacceptable because they attenuate the desired radiation, and physical shutters of reasonable size and complexity have difficulty reaching the required closure speeds. We propose to develop an electromagnetically driven isolation valve which will hermetically seal a 3 cm diameter aperture with a robust solid barrier in about 10 microseconds with timing jitter of less than 100 ns. This valve will achieve significantly higher closure speeds than previous designs and effectively protect a test article from fast moving debris. The valve will be capable of operating many times per day with minimal maintenance and very low per-shot cost. Our team is uniquely qualified to perform the proposed research program and includes engineers experienced in optical diagnostics and debris mitigation at plasma radiation source facilities, as well as pulsed power.