pulsepower

Pulsepower, also known as pulsed power, is a field of electrical engineering and physics focused on generating and delivering short-duration, high-power electrical pulses. The central challenge is to store energy at modest voltage and then release it extremely quickly to achieve high peak power without damaging the energy source. The pulses are typically nanoseconds to microseconds long, with peak powers ranging from megawatts to gigawatts.

Core technologies include energy storage devices such as capacitors and inductors, fast switches to interrupt current, and pulse-forming networks and pulse compression lines to shape pulses. Common approaches include Marx generators, Blumlein lines, and pulse-forming networks. Advances in solid-state switching and insulation have enabled more compact and reliable systems.

Applications span science and industry: pulsed laser pumping, inertial confinement fusion research, flash radiography for hydrodynamics experiments, particle accelerators and high-energy-density physics, radar and microwave generation, X-ray sources, and industrial materials processing.

History of the field traces to mid-20th-century research in defense and science, driven by needs for high-energy radiation sources and rapid switching. Early concepts relied on spark gaps and vacuum tubes; later developments incorporated solid-state switches, high-voltage capacitors, and sophisticated pulse-forming networks to improve efficiency, control, and safety.

See also: Pulsed power, Marx generator, Blumlein line, pulse-forming network, high-power electronics.