Design and Performance of the Sandia Laboratories Hermes II Flash X-Ray Generator

Pulsed power technology has grown rapidly during the last decade. Particular credit is due to research efforts at United Kingdom Atomic Weapons Research Establishment (AWRE). The largest machine presently in operation is the Sandia Laboratories Hermes II which has produced a 170 kA beam of electrons at energies of 12 million volts for times of 100 ns. This paper reviews the design and performance of the Hermes II and includes data from Hermes I, a prototype.