Cathode jet pinching as the effective mechanism of plasma heating and acceleration

An analytical survey is presented of some events which have been discovered in cathode plasma jets of pulse vacuum arcs and sparks. The authors of the given survey performed an analysis of both their own results and the data of other researchers and concluded that the effects revealed within a wide range of parameters of discharges are similar by its nature and could be explained by cathode plasma jet pinching. This phenomenon results in significant enhancement of the energy and charge state of ions of cathode plasma jet in pulse vacuum discharges. For quantitative estimation of magnetic compression influence on plasma property a few theoretical models have been developed which describe (i) a steady state jet, (ii) a jet with increasing current, and (iii) a pulse plasma jet with a free front. Their application to vacuum discharges has made it possible to tie together many pieces of experimental evidence