  SPEED2 is a generator based on Marx technology and was designed in the
University of Dusseldorf. SPEED2 consists on 40 +/- Marx modules connected in
parallel (4.1 mF equivalent Marx generator capacity, 300 kV, 4 MA in short
circuit, 187 kJ, 400 ns rise time, dI/dt~1013 A/s). Currently the SPEED2 is
operating at the Comision Chilena de Energia Nuclear, CCHEN, Chile, being the
most powerful and energetic device for dense transient plasma in the Southern
Hemisphere. Most of the previous works developed in SPEED2 at Dusseldorf were
done in a plasma focus configuration for soft X-ray emission and the neutron
emission from SPEED2 was not completely studied. The research program at CCHEN
considers experiments in different pinch configurations (plasma focus, gas
puffed plasma focus, gas embedded Z-pinch, wire arrays) at current of hundred
of kiloamperes to mega-amperes, using the SPEED2 generator. The Chilean
operation has begun implementing and developing diagnostics in a conventional
plasma focus configuration operating in deuterium in order to characterize the
neutron emission and the hard X-ray production. Silver activation counters,
plastics CR39 and scintillator-photomultiplier detectors are used to
characterize the neutron emission. Images of metallic plates with different
thickness are obtained on commercial radiographic film, Agfa Curix ST-G2, in
order to characterize an effective energy of the hard X-ray outside of the
discharge .
