High-current vacuum arc appearance in nonhomogeneous axial magnetic field

Author

Chaly, Alexey M. ; Logatchev, Alexander A. ; Zabello, Konstantin K. ; Nik, Sergey M Shkol

Author_Institution

Tavrida Electr. Ltd., Moscow, Russia

Volume

31

Issue

5

fYear

2003

Firstpage

884

Lastpage

889

Abstract

The distribution of the spots over the cathode of a high-current vacuum arc stabilized by an axial magnetic field (AMF) has been investigated. AMF configuration has been varied from conventional "bell-shaped" to "magnetic barrier," where a substantial AMF is created on the electrode edge and virtually vanishes in the center. The complex effect of the AMF configuration on the behavior of cathode spots has been satisfactorily explained based on the Steenbeck minimum principle. It has been shown that the "magnetic barrier" represents an optimum AMF configuration, providing even current distribution and relatively low and stable arc voltage.

Keywords

cathodes; magnetic fields; vacuum arcs; Steenbeck minimum principle; axial magnetic field; bell-shaped configuration; cathode spots; complex effect; electrode edge; high-current vacuum arc; high-current vacuum arc appearance; magnetic barrier configuration; nonhomogeneous axial magnetic field; Anodes; Cascading style sheets; Cathodes; Circuit breakers; Current density; Current distribution; Electrodes; Magnetic fields; Vacuum arcs; Voltage;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Plasma Science, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0093-3813

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/TPS.2003.818414

Filename

1240031