Scaling of bright spots in X pinches from 1 MA TO 6 MA

Summary form only given, as follows. Numerous plasma pinch devices have reported the presence of brief, intense, soft x-ray bursts from tiny regions of plasma that are variously called “bright spots,” “hot spots,” or “micropinches.” The X-pinch load geometry was originally conceived as a method to study the formation and properties of bright spots in z-pinch plasmas. X-pinch plasmas driven by 0.2 MA can form bright spots that are 0.8–1.5 microns in diameter [1,2], have temperatures of about 1 keV, densities >10% of solid density, and last for 10–100 ps [3,4,5]. These conditions are believed to result from the direct magnetic compression of radiating matter. Physical models that capture the behavior of 0.2 MA X pinches predict more extreme parameters at currents >1 MA [6].