title: Duration and intensity of the radiation pulse from a flash tube.
abstract: The peak current, power, and half-peak duration of the current through a flash tube are determined. The flash tube may be considered as an element in an R-L-C circuit whose electrical behavior is dependent on a single parameter. The variation of tube current with voltage is examined and the plasma impedance determined. The intensity, rise time, decay time, and half-peak duration of the radiation pulse are determined for a range of tube geometries and gas pressures. The duration of the radiation pulse depends on that of the current, but the intensity is dependent on both gas pressure and power density.
authors.affiliation: University of Sheffield, England.
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Wooding