Nanosecond Scale Discharge Dynamics in High Pressure Air

The use of pulsed nanosecond scale discharges is promising for automotive engine ignition because air-hydrocarbon mixtures can be chemically activated with a nonthermal plasma. Very short high voltage pulses are a good way to control the energy which is transferred into the gas at pressures above atmospheric. The development of such a discharge, in a point-to-plane configuration, under a short and high overvoltage, is investigated in air for different pressures through fast imaging and electrical records.