Resistance model for helical MCGS

A semi-empirical computational model describing the design, operation, and time- dependent electrical output of magnetocumulative generators (MCGs) has been presented in previous publications by the authors. This model has been shown to successfully predict the behavior of a number of helical generators developed by laboratories around the world over a number of years. This paper is an initial attempt to describe the physics involved in the time-dependent behavior of the electrical resistance during the operation of these generators. Understanding this parameter is important since it appears to be dependent on the physical dimensions of the generator, the detonation velocity, and the plasma properties of shock heated air. The early-time decrease in resistance appears to be related to the rate at which the plasma is formed, while the late-time increase in resistance is related to the transport properties of the plasma.