Design of terahertz-wave Doppler interferometric velocimetry for detonation physics
Zhaohui Zhai, Changlin Sun, Qiao Liu, Liuwei Guo, Yu-Si Liu, Xu Zhang, Detian Wang, Kun Meng, Jiang Li, Liang-Hui Du, Shouxian Liu, Sen-Cheng Zhong, Liguo Zhu
Abstract
The diagnosis of the initiation and growth of detonation in high explosives (HEs) is important in detonation physics. We designed and experimentally demonstrated a non-invasive high-precision free-space terahertz-wave Doppler interferometric velocimetry (TDV) design for diagnosing the transient detonation processes in HEs. The system can non-intrusively record the propagation of the shock/detonation wavefront inside HEs continuously and measure key detonation parameters (position/displacement, detonation velocity, etc.). A detailed quasi-optical design for TDV is discussed. The terahertz penetration ability and the refractive index of representative HEs are presented in the frequency range of 0.2–1.4 THz. Additionally, a typical shock-to-detonation transition of an insensitive high explosive was studied using a prototype 0.212 THz TDV system, which demonstrated the high precision of displacement measurements made using I/Q demodulation. Furthermore, the performance of the TDV technique is discussed. TDV may enable non-invasive and high-precision diagnostics for detonation and shockwave physics.