PLA scientists reveal tech breakthrough behind world's fastest coilgun
The footage, released by
state-owned arms manufacturer China South Industries Group (CSGC) on April 18, has raised eyebrows among military experts as the firing capacity greatly outstrips current weaponry and could redefine future combat.
While the CSGC remained tight-lipped about the technology involved, a peer-reviewed paper published on Monday by a team of military
scientists offered a hint: the world's first capacitor-free electromagnetic coil gun, powered directly by
lithium batteries
The breakthrough, detailed in China's Journal of Gun Launch & Control, centres on eliminating the Achilles' heel of electromagnetic weapons – capacitors.
Recent footage of the Chinese electromagnetic coil gun, which can fire 3,000 rounds per minute, shows it can shatter car windows and demolish door panels in seconds. Photo: douyin
Capacitors are devices that store electrical energy and until now coil guns have relied on that energy for rapid discharge, a process that creates lag times for recharging. This limitation had capped the firing rate of early Chinese prototypes and the US-made GR-1 'Anvil' to 100 rounds per minute.
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