Triggered spark gap performance is key to the success of pulsed power systems, and precise gas pressure control is key to the performance of triggered spark gaps. No matter where you are, the pressure now isn’t the same as it was yesterday. Meteorologists measure atmospheric pressure because it is a sensitive indicator of weather conditions. WHIP holds absolute pressure rock-steady to optimize peak current, pulse shape and jitter while extending component lifetime.

WHIP converts the output of your waveform or pulse/delay generator into a precise pressure waveform and makes the actual pressure at any instant available to your oscilloscope or DAQ for real-time monitoring. If you need constant pressure regardless of environmental variations, adjust your pulse/delay generator output to 2.5 Vdc and you’ll see spark gap pressure stabilize on your oscilloscope to 25.00 psia within a fraction of a second. Or to automatically measure the self-break curve of an experimental triggered spark gap, program your AWG to output a 10 to 0 V ramp and WHIP will ramp spark gap pressure from 100 to 0 psia.