Reduction of instabilities in wire arrays Z-pinches

Sheared flows have been predicted to stabilize the kink instability that disrupts the Z-pinch. Experiments conducted at the Nevada Terawatt Facility used conical wire arrays with the addition of a wire on axis to create a sheared flow. Multiframe laser images and time integrated pinhole images suggest that the sheared flow generated in this configuration is sufficient to suppress the kink instability.