Sensitivity of magnetohydrodynamic simulations of Joule-heated conductors to the vaporization curve in equations of state.

Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of electrically exploded aluminum and copper rods demonstrate a technique to validate equations of state (EOS) for rapidly Joule-heated conductors. The balance of internal and magnetic forces at the conductor-insulator interface drives the metal there along the vaporization phase boundary. Variations between critical points and vaporization curves in existing models predict differing densities and temperatures in MHD simulations for these models.

International trends in health science librarianship: Part 2--Northern Europe.

This is the third in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship in the first decade of the 21st century. The invited authors were asked to reflect on developments in their country--viz. Austria, Belgium, France and the Netherlands.

Computational interpretation of megagauss-magnetic-field-induced metallic surface plasma initiation and evolution.

Numerical simulations of experiments in which plasma is formed on an aluminum surface by megagauss magnetic fields provide the first computational demonstration of a magnetic-field threshold that must be reached for aluminum plasma to begin to form. The computed times of plasma initiation agree reasonably well with the observations across the full range of rod diameters, leading to the conclusion that plasma formation is a thermal process. Computationally, plasma forms first in low-density material that is resistive enough to expand across the magnetic field and yet conductive enough that Ohmic heating exceeds expansion cooling.