Two different modes of wire explosion for nano-powder production

Based on a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, we report on the first observation of two different modes of wire explosion for nanosized powder production in 5–30 kPa ambient gas, depending on the property of wire material. For wire material with relatively high resistivity, such as titanium, more than one vapor burst was observed. While for wire material with relatively low resistivity, such as copper, the whole wire would explode totally within one single vapor burst.