Control and Stabilization of Runaway Electron Emission at the Delay Stage of Pulsed Breakdown in an Overvolted Atmospheric Gap

In this paper, we present investigations of picosecond effects in atmospheric gaps at the stage of a pulsed breakdown delay. It is shown that in centimeter gaps with rapid achievement of multiple overvoltages, the breakdown point, its stability, and development time are determined by the advance emission of runaway electrons. Methods for controlling and stabilizing the temporary and energy characteristics of the flows of these particles are proposed.