Title :
An upper limit for the electric current for shock-free plasma flow in a vacuum arc
Author :
Gidalevich, E. ; Goldsmith, S. ; Boxman, R.L.
Author_Institution :
Electr. Discharge & Plasma Lab., Tel Aviv Univ., Israel
Abstract :
The cathode plasma jet deceleration caused by interaction with a secondary ion cushion at the anode is analyzed. The secondary ions are assumed to be sputtered or/and reflected from the copper anode. It was found that for an inter-electrode gap of L=2 cm, and a secondary ion velocity of 103 m/s, there is no upper limit for the current density for continuous jet motion. For secondary ion velocities <0.25×103 m/s, the upper limit is 105 A/m 2
Keywords :
anodes; cathodes; current density; electric current; ion mobility; plasma jets; plasma theory; vacuum arcs; 1E3 m/s; 2 cm; anode secondary ion cushion; cathode plasma jet deceleration; continuous jet motion; copper anode; current density upper limit; inter-electrode gap; secondary ion velocity; shock-free plasma flow; vacuum arc; Anodes; Cathodes; Copper; Current; Electrons; Hydrodynamics; Plasma density; Plasma properties; Plasma waves; Vacuum arcs;
Conference_Titel :
Discharges and Electrical Insulation in Vacuum, 2000. Proceedings. ISDEIV. XIXth International Symposium on
Conference_Location :
Xi´an
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-5791-4
DOI :
10.1109/DEIV.2000.877302
