| This thesis provides an introduction to electromagnetic railgun technology which has the potential to impart payload velocities more than twice that obtainable from conventional chemical powder guns. The discussion develops the coaxial railgun parameters and compares them to a parallel railgun which has received the most research attention to date.;The coaxial rail electromagnetic launcher has not been developed because of limitations on projectile design and autoloader mechanisms imposed by the center conductor. New advances in materials and non-weapon applications remove these limitations. Parameters of interest for comparison include the inductance gradient, current density distribution, magnetic field forward of the armature, and rail separation force.;A small coaxial railgun experiment is described which demonstrates coaxial railgun performance and magnetic field behavior. Favorable comparisons are shown which indicate the coaxial rail geometry should be explored further for applications such as an orbiting launcher for scientific space probes or logistics payloads. |
