Title :
Ecton mechanism of the vacuum arc cathode spot
Author :
Mesyats, Gennady A.
Author_Institution :
Inst. of Electrophys., Acad. of Sci., Ekaterinburg, Russia
fDate :
12/1/1995 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A new mechanism for the operation of a cathode spot in a vacuum arc, based on ecton processes, is proposed. An ecton is formed by the explosion of the tip of a jet of molten metal as it interacts with plasma. The time of ecton operation is assumed to be limited by the thermal conductivity of the liquid metal. For copper electrodes, the theoretical expressions are derived for the specific mass removal, ion erosion characteristics, current density, and the diameters of craters. The results agree well with the experimental data available
Keywords :
cathodes; plasma-beam interactions; vacuum arcs; Cu electrodes; current density; ecton mechanism; ion erosion characteristics; liquid metal; mass removal; molten metal jet tip explosion; thermal conductivity; vacuum arc cathode spot; Cathodes; Current; Elementary particle vacuum; Explosions; Explosives; Particle scattering; Plasma properties; Plasma temperature; Thermal conductivity; Vacuum arcs;
Journal_Title :
Plasma Science, IEEE Transactions on
