Title :
Modeling the propagation of long, intense microwave pulses in mixtures of air and SF6
Author :
Khanaka, Gizzing H. ; Yee, Jick H. ; Mayhal, David J.
Author_Institution :
Lawrence Livermore Nat. Lab., California Univ., CA, USA
fDate :
4/1/1990 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
Self-consistent equations-Maxwell´s equations and the electron fluid transport equations-are used to study the interaction of long, intense microwave pulses with gases. The threshold for breakdown is a factor of seven higher in SF6 than in air. This difference is attributed to the fact that SF6 is an insulator. When SF6 was mixed with air, the breakdown threshold increased with the increase in the percentage of SF6. Introducing 5-10% of SF6 in air increased the breakdown threshold by a factor of 3-4. The electron density and conductivity and the plasma frequency increased as the pulse intensity increased. The growth rates of the electron density and conductivity were much higher in air than in SF6
Keywords :
air; electric breakdown of gases; gas mixtures; radiowave propagation; sulphur compounds; Maxwell´s equations; air-SF6 mixtures; breakdown threshold; conductivity; electron density; electron fluid transport equations; insulator; long intense microwave pulses; plasma frequency; propagation; pulse intensity; self-consistent equations; Conductivity; Electric breakdown; Electrons; Frequency; Gases; Helium; Maxwell equations; Microwave propagation; Plasma density; Sulfur hexafluoride;
Journal_Title :
Plasma Science, IEEE Transactions on
