Coilgun
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A coilgun (not to be confused with a railgun) is a type of magnetic accelerator gun (MAG) or magnetic accelerator cannon (MAC). It uses one or more electromagnetic coils to accelerate a magnetic shell to very high velocities. The name "Gauss gun" is a reference to Carl Friedrich Gauss, who formulated mathematical descriptions of the electromagnetic effect used by magnetic accelerators. Coilguns work according to the same magnetic principle as the Gauss gun, but their methods vary: both guns use an attractive magnetic force to accelerate the projectile, but Gauss guns use electromagnets while coilguns use solenoids.[1]
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[edit] Overview
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Many hobbyists use low-cost rudimentary designs to experiment with coilguns, for example using photoflash capacitors from a disposable camera as the energy source, and a low inductance coil to propel the projectile forward.
[edit] Construction
A coilgun, as the name implies, consists of a coil of wire (or solenoid) with a ferromagnetic projectile placed at one of its ends. A large current is pulsed through the coil and a strong magnetic field forms, pulling the projectile to the center of the coil. When the projectile nears this point, the coil is switched off and a next coil can be switched on, progressively accelerating the projectile down successive stages. In common coilgun designs, the "barrel" of the gun is made up of a track that the projectile rides on, with the driver coils around the track. Power is supplied to the coils from some sort of fast discharge storage device, typically a battery of high-capacity high voltage capacitors designed for fast energy discharge.
A superconducting coilgun called a quench gun could be created by successively quenching a line of adjacent coaxial superconducting coils forming a gun barrel, generating a wave of magnetic field gradient travelling at any desired speed. A travelling superconducting coil might be made to ride this wave like a surfboard. The device would be a mass driver or linear synchronous motor with the propulsion energy stored directly in the drive coils.
[edit] Potential uses
Like railguns and ram accelerators, coilguns have been proposed for use in delivering payloads to space.
A coilgun has no moving parts other than the projectile, and the only noise produced is by the projectile moving. These attributes may make it attractive as a weapon.
[edit] Coilguns in science fiction
Coilguns are a popular device in science fiction, especially sci-fi role playing and video games, where they go under such names Gauss cannon, Gauss rifle, or Magnetic Accelerator Cannon. The examples are numerous. One example is presented in Neal Asher's recent novel, The Voyage of the Sable Keech, in which an alien spaceship deploys a coilgun in orbit around the planet central to the storyline, to attempt to destroy a target within the a deep ocean on that planet.
[edit] References
- ^ B. N. Turman and R. J. Kaye, EM Mortar Technology Development For Indirect Fire, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87185-1182
