Evaluation of the effect of ion mobility in plasma erosion opening switch

Plasma erosion opening switch (PEOS) has been developed in the past mainly for diverting TW power to produce pulsed ion beams for fusion research. It has demonstrated the highest current rise time possible and highest energy delivered. Recent advancements in high power microwave generate new interest in applying PEOS in such systems. Traditional carbon flash board plasma source is not suitable for repetitive application. We suggest the use of electrostatic injected hydrogen plasma as a new plasma source for a repeatable PEOS. Carbon plasma and hydrogen plasma differ in the areas like plasma injection speed, sheath current density, opening mechanism, and space charge field. Our simulations indicate the most importance factors in PEOS are magnetic insulation and cathode surface emission; therefore replacing carbon with hydrogen should make similar performance. Some discrepancies between simulation and experimental work are discussed and concept drawings on how to test the simulation experimentally and how to apply hydrogen are suggested.