The Cellar - 3/14/2006: Z Machine

The Cellar (http://cellar.org/index.php)

- Image of the Day (http://cellar.org/forumdisplay.php?f=10)

- - 3/14/2006: Z Machine (http://cellar.org/showthread.php?t=10252)

3/14/2006: Z Machine

http://cellar.org/2006/zmachine.jpg

Two of the largest images ever yet on IotD, and two more images that really challenge the JPG format. Suggested by xoB from yesterday's APoD.

This is the Z Machine, which recently created the hottest man-made temperature ever. Unexpectedly.

And it's not operated by some evil overlord, but by Sandia National Laboratories. The machine, according to the APoD...

Quote:

purposely creates high temperatures by focusing 20 million amps of electricity into a small region further confined by a magnetic field. Vertical wires give the Z Machine its name.

Huh. Well let's try Wikipedia:

Quote:

The machine operates by releasing an electrical pulse and associated magnetic field. The energy from a 20-million-ampere electrical discharge vaporizes an array of thin tungsten wires and a powerful magnetic field crushes the ensuing plasma. The collapsing plasma produces X-rays which create a shock wave that bears on the material being tested. The powerful fluctuation in the magnetic field (or "electromagnetic pulse") also generates electric current in all of the metallic objects in the room (see picture at right).

So how'd it make that hot temperature?

Quote:

In 2006, the Z Machine produced plasmas with temperatures in excess of 2 GK (109 K) or 3.6 billion oF. Project scientists were doubtful about the results, but after fourteen months of computer modeling and further tests, they have concluded that the results are, indeed, valid. It is believed the high temperature plasmas were achieved by using a slightly larger spool of wires with thicker steel wires substituted for the usual tungsten wires.

So all the sparky bits are just a side-effect of the real thing going on in the center.

But it's purty, ain't it?

http://cellar.org/2006/zmachinesection.jpg

This is cool. Doc Ock's fusion machine was cooler, though.

Just for a reference on how hot 2*10^9 K really is,
the core of our sun is estimated to be at 1.36*10^7 K

Its about time Science found a reliable method to dispose of those pesky tungsten and steel wires...

What fascinated me in the original article is that the temps were higher than they calculated possible with the amount of matter within the test chamber. One guy said something to the effect that there must have been more matter than they could account for. If so, where'd it come from? Anyone missing some socks or small animals?

"Technician Dolores Graham uses tweezers to build an array of wires, each 1/10 the diameter of a human hair, that form a target about the size of a spool of thread (between horizontal metal rings) for Sandia's huge Z accelerator."

<a href="http://www.sandia.gov/media/images/jpg/Z01.jpg"><img src="http://www.sandia.gov/media/images/Z01.gif"> click to enlarge 928K</a>

That one little array of wires causes all that fuss.

welcome RaisenOx!!! good to see someone else that can quote the internal temperature of the Sun.
saw this one a couple of days ago, its now the background to my windows.

all i can think is. "everybody in the pool!!"

Thanks for the welcome Kagen. I've been lurking around for a couple of months now, but finally decided to start posting today. I'm still orienting myself here, I guess html works in the forums but doesn't show up on the blog.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Promenea

Oxygen? Nitrogen? Trace gases?

You'd think that they'd have accounted for that, though. Maybe they're vaporizing more of the supporting structure than they think.

They opened a portal to hell, and an unlucky demon poked his head through.

yeah i dont think even a demon could withstand 10^9 K.

id be a little worried about the people making this thing. i wouldnt want to hear after they turned that thing on "ooo, that was a little hotter than we expected". imagine if they built one bigger and more powerful in the first place to get to one billion K. imagine how hot that would have been!!!

Quote:

They opened a portal to hell, and an unlucky demon poked his head through

And now I'm the only one who can stop the invasion:shotgun: ... Cept I ain't going near that machine!

Nanowires? No link. hunt the damn thing.

Things like this make me wonder when someone is going to "Unexpectedly" do something extremely dangerous and kill us all...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Relisnhoj

Things like this make me wonder when someone is going to "Unexpectedly" do something extremely dangerous and kill us all...

like when the US government knew there was a slight chance that the atom bomb could ignite the oxygen in the atmosphere and incinerate the earth in a matter of minutes. it was a very very small chance but a very very very big risk.