Pulsed Hollow Cathode Discharge with Nanosecond Risetime

This paper reports the operation of a cylindrical hollow cathode discharge with current risetimes of a few nanoseconds at current densities at the entrance of the cathode in the range of 50-560A · cm-2 and at voltages of 280-850 V. Time-dependent measurements of the impedance of the discharge are presented. They allow for the evaluation of discharge quantities such as risetime, delay time, discharge voltage, and current, depending on the operation parameters as applied voltage, pressure, and preionization. The power density in the active region of the hollow cathode exceeded 200 kW · cm-3.