Impulse Generator Creates Indoor Lightning May 29, 2008 at 9:30 am · Filed under Science & Tech Youâre looking at an impulse generator at the National Grid High Voltage Laboratory at the University of Manchester. No, itâs not a part of a Star Trek spaceship, but it does something pretty cool: it lets researchers study how materials react to lightning. Ian Cotton, a senior lecturer at the University of Manchesterâs School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, says: "We do a lot of lig