Explosion of thin Al foils in air

An inductive-based power supply (240 μH, 50 kA) was used for the investigation of the foil explosion process in the time range of 0.05 msexpl<0.2 ms. The foil current for these experiments was set between 10 kA to 27 kA. The foil thickness and length were 10 um and 5 cm, respectively. Images of the exploding foil captured by a fast framing camera show that the radiation of the exploding foil discharge starts on the voltage rise. Metal vapor pressure was measured during the experiments. Phenomenological model was developed for the experimental data interpretations. This model suggests that the plasma appearance is related to the ejection of metal vapor during the metal boiling. High vapor temperature permits to ignite cathode spots even at low electric field. It results in the arcing in the metal vapor and bypassing the liquid pieces of the foil.