Z Pulsed Power Facility

Science from the Center of the Earth to Black Holes

The Z machine is located in Albuquerque, N.M., and is part of the Pulsed Power Program, which started at Sandia National Laboratories back in the 1960s. Pulsed power is a technology that concentrates electrical energy and turns it into short pulses of enormous power, which are then used to generate X-rays and gamma rays.

  • An optic from the Z Backlighter Laser Facility is examined prior to installation.
  • Lasers are used to align diagnostics and hardware prior to shooting on Z.
  • The Z Pulsed Power Facility produces tremendous energy when it fires.
  • The water section of Z was replaced during the Z Refurbishment Project in 2007.
  • Shane Speas loads hardware for an upcoming shot on Z.
  • The center section of Z is prepared for each shot.

Research Areas

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Science

Z provides the fastest, most accurate, and cheapest method to determine how materials will react under high pressures and temperatures, characteristics that can then be expressed in formulas called “equations of state.”

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Energy

The importance of Z in solving the world’s energy challenges is directly connected to its potential in the realm of fusion. Inertial confinement fusion for peaceful production of electricity is of interest to Sandia’s Pulsed Power Sciences.

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Fusion

In order to fuse the atoms, the force that repels them as they come together must be overcome. Accelerators accomplish this by forcing molecules to collide with one another at very high temperatures.

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National Security

The detonation of nuclear weapons may affect equipment at great distances. This means electronic weapons systems & related equipment may malfunction when exposed, even at a distance, to radiation from an opponent’s weapons.