Optimum conditions of the runaway electron beam generation during a uniform gas breakdown

It was shown that a uniform breakdown of a gas gap must be accompanied by the Stoletov effect, i.e., a current maximum in pressure at a given voltage pulse. Analogues of the Stoletov constant were calculated for the pulsed non-self-sustained discharge in various gases. These constants also determine the minimum breakdown delay time. It was shown that the maximum current of the electron beam generated in the gas-filled diode is reached at a pressure corresponding to the maximum current and for an electrode spacing corresponding to the electron drift length during the pulse.     

Voltage Recovery Time of Small Spark Gaps

A two-pulse method is used to determine how fast and to what degree a small spark gap can recover its voltage holdoff capability after breaking down. The first pulse is used to overvolt and break down the gap. The second pulse is used, after a time delay, to determine the voltage recovery of the gap. By varying the time delay to the second pulse, a recovery voltage versus time plot can be obtained. Time delays from 10 ?s to 100 ms have been recorded. The spark gap discharges millijoules of energy with a gap spacing of less than 1 mm. Recovery has been measured at breakdown voltages of up to 10 kV in argon, hydrogen, and a mixture of the 2 gases. The experimental setup, pulse circuits, and data collection methods are described. Percent voltage recovery versus time plots for various parameters (gas species, gap spacing, and pressure) are discussed.     

Optical breakdown in a liquid: The slow phase of the dynamics of cavity collapse and a noncontact technique for pressure measurement in a liquid

It is demonstrated that, in the case of optically probing the breakdown region, a pulsed signal is formed due to the acoustic pulses produced by the breakdown and collapse of the cavitation cavity. The measured dependence of the delay time of the second pulse on the hydrostatic pressure in the liquid and the pressure of saturated vapor agrees well with the theoretical dependence corresponding to the hydrodynamic model of the cavity. On the basis of the optical cavitation effect, a technique is proposed for a noncontact measurement of hydrostatic pressure in a liquid enclosed in a sealed cell. The range of applicability of the technique is evaluated.     

Spectrum of fast electrons in a dense gas in the presence of a nonuniform pulsed field

The problems of gas preionization in discharges related to laser physics are considered. The propagation of fast electrons injected from the cathode in the presence of a nonuniform nonstationary field and the motion of multiplying electrons at the edge of the avalanche in the presence of a nonuniform nonstationary field are simulated. The effect of the voltage pulse steepness and the field nonuniformity on the mean propagation velocity of fast electrons and their energy distribution is demonstrated. At certain combinations of the voltage pulse rise time and amplitude and at a certain time interval, the center of gravity of the electron cloud can move in the opposite direction relative to the direction of force acting upon electrons. It is also demonstrated that the number of hard particles (and, hence, the hard component of the x-ray bremsstrahlung) increases with both an increase in the voltage amplitude and a decrease in the pulse rise time. For nonoptimal conditions of the picosecond voltage pulse, an assumption is formulated: an electron beam in gas is formed due to the electrons at the edge of the avalanche rather than the background multiplication wave approaching the anode.     

纳秒脉冲电压下气体开关的击穿特性

 采用快速Marx发生器产生ns量级的高电压脉冲,分别开展了不同脉冲电压值下气体开关自击穿实验,获得了气体开关在不同气压下的击穿电压和击穿延迟时间以及抖动。详细介绍了纳秒脉冲电压作用下,气体火花开关击穿电压和击穿延迟时间随工作气压变化的特点,指出了气体开关在不同场合应用时的要求。     

百kV/cm场强下SF6气体开关纳秒脉冲击穿场强和时延经验公式

百kV/cm高场强纳秒脉冲条件下,采用J. C. Martin经验公式估算SF₆气体击穿场强时,估算值与实验结果差异显著。为了进一步指导高场强脉冲气体开关设计,为开关工作状态调节提供依据,借鉴经典击穿场强经验公式形式建立了百kV/cm场强下SF₆气体开关纳秒脉冲击穿场强和时延与实验参数之间的关系,基于实验数据拟合形成了修正系数的击穿场强和时延经验公式。研究表明,百kV/cm场强和纳秒脉冲条件下脉冲电压斜率对开关击穿特性有重要影响,击穿场强与击穿时延相互关联。百ns至μs脉冲与几十ns脉冲气体放电机理的区别引起放电过程中击穿时延组成发生变化,导致了经典击穿场强经验公式估算值与实验结果的显著差异。修正系数的击穿经验公式可为电磁脉冲模拟器输出开关提供更为精确的工程设计依据。     

直流叠加脉冲电压下FLTD气体开关击穿特性

分析了直流叠加脉冲电压(定义为复合电压)下次级感应电压触发快脉冲直线变压器驱动源(FLTD)中气体开关击穿延时过程,给出了击穿延时的估算公式。初步实验研究了FLTD用三电极气体开关在复合电压作用下的击穿特性,结果表明:在±70kV直流充电电压叠加300kV/30ns快脉冲电压的复合电压作用下,气体开关的击穿延时小于相同工作系数下常规触发方式的击穿延时,采用SF6气体绝缘时,击穿延时较常规触发方式减小了17%~30%;采用N2绝缘时,减小了约50%,开关工作系数为55%时,击穿延时抖动小于5ns;理论估算的复合电压下击穿延时与实测结果基本吻合。     

Factors affecting and methods of improving the pulse repetitionfrequency of pulse-charged and DC-charged high-pressure gasswitches

The results of this paper describe some of the factors which affect the repetitive operation of high-pressure gas switches (spark gaps) for both pulse-charged and DC-charged operation. Also discussed are methods which may be employed to improve the pulse repetition frequency (PRF) of spark gaps operating under such conditions. Under pulse-charged conditions, the voltage recovery process of the spark gap has been shown to be restricted following partial density recovery by the residual ion population. This restriction may be minimized by applying a suitable bias voltage across the gap to remove the ion influence. It is also possible to manipulate the voltage-pressure (V-p) breakdown characteristic of a spark gap in order to improve the rate of rise of recovery voltage by reducing the recovery voltage dependence upon gas pressure. The combination of these effects has been shown to reduce the voltage recovery time of pulse-charged spark gaps from several hundred milliseconds to several milliseconds. Under DC-charged conditions, where no “dead time” is available for voltage recovery, it is possible to employ corona discharge effects, which occur in highly nonuniform fields, to stabilize and control the breakdown process. The use of corona stabilization has enabled the operation of a self-closing spark gap at a PRF of more than 5 kHz, without employing gas flow techniques. A triggered version of a corona-stabilized spark gap has also been developed which has demonstrated single run capabilities of 10⁷ (4 h continuous operation at 700 pps) and a lifetime of ~10 shots (maintenance free, sealed switch). The triggered corona switch has also demonstrated controlled switching up to a PRF of 1.2 kHz     

Experimental study of pulsed corona discharge in air

We report on the results of experimental investigation of a pulsed corona discharge in electric fields with different degrees of nonuniformity under the action of a standard thunderstorm pulse in a wide range of voltages from the origination threshold to the breakdown. A high-sensitivity video camera makes it possible to record microdischarge and streamer processes in air long before the spark breakdown. It is known that the size of the corona discharge sheath increases with the supplied voltage, and the shape of the corona sheath depends on the polarity of the active electrode [1, 2]. It was demonstrated for the first time by Peek [3] that the range of voltages from the initiation of a corona discharge to the spark breakdown increases with the degree of nonuniformity of the electric field. We show that an analogous pattern is observed for a pulsed corona also. Our results show that the form of a pulsed corona discharge considerably depends on the pulse polarity, and a spark breakdown becomes possible when most branches in the streamer corona cover the electrode gap.     

A New Method for Measuring Breakdown and Maintenance Fields in Microwave Discharges

A new experimental approach for comparative measurements of breakdown and maintenance electric fields in microwave discharges is described. The method is based on the analysis of the RF pulses transmitted to a matched load, in absence and in presence of the discharge, by the applicator employed for coupling the RF power to the gas under investigation. Results on breakdown and maintenance field in microwave discharges in nitrogen, at a frequency of 2.45 GHz, for flow and non-flow conditions, in the pressure range 0.5 to 6 torr, are reported.     

Modulation instability in pulsed surface-wave sustained discharges

Experimental results showing development of modulation instability and tendency to soliton formation in pulsed gas discharges sustained by surface waves are presented. The measurements are performed in argon discharges at gas pressure 13-1.3·10³ Pa sustained by pulsed microwave power at 2.45 GHz, The changes along the discharge length of the shape of the pulses of the total light emission, which is an indication for the plasma density, and of the wave electric field creating the discharge, are registrated. The cases when the modulation instability arises from the level of fluctuations in the plasma and when it is forced by the applied signal producing the discharge are demonstrated. The obtained results are discussed in terms of weak nonlinearity superimposed on the mechanism of strong ionization nonlinearity responsible for the discharge creation itself. A separation of a solitary-like wave front the leading edge of the pulse is also reported as an experimental result     

喷射等离子体触发气体开关导通特性

利用内嵌微孔火花放电产生喷射等离子体、作用于两电极开关,研究了间隙距离、气压、气体种类、开关工作系数和电压极性配合等因素对等离子体喷射控制开关导通特性的影响。实验结果表明,等离子体喷射触发开关可在工作系数为10%的条件下可靠快速导通,当开关采用0.5 MPa_N₂作为绝缘介质、间隙距离5 mm时,触发导通时延为11.7 μs,抖动为1.42 μs;当间隙距离增大到18 mm时,触发导通时延增大至19.7 μs,触发可靠性降低;当工作系数由10%增大到60%时,触发导通时延由11.7 μs降低至1.1 μs。在确保开关自击穿电压一致的前提下,短间隙、高气压、负触发脉冲电压、正工作电压更有利于减小开关触发导通时延。     

LaB6在低压强氮气和氦气中的放电特性

 研究了LaB₆在1~10 Pa氮气和氦气中的直流和脉冲放电特性以及放电过程对电极的影响。结果表明，电极直径为5 mm的LaB6氦气放电管在脉冲工作状态下可以长期稳定放电。在脉冲电压为2.2 kV、脉冲宽度10 ms、频率13.3 Hz下，脉冲峰值放电电流超过120 A。氦气放电管在放电过程中，阴极表面有离子的清洗和活化作用，可以使电极的表面逸出功降低，提高放电管的发射能力和稳定性。LaB₆作为气体放电电极具有寿命长、延迟时间短、放电电流大等优点，可用于重复强流脉冲气体放电的高压高速开关器件。     

The impulse dielectric behavior of N2 gas in sphere-plane gap

The focus of this work has been on the pre-breakdown phenomena and the breakdown characteristics of N₂ gas in a sphere-plane gap under various impulse voltages. Both electrical and optical experimental investigation methods were used. Following parameters were considered: gas pressure range from 0.2 to 0.6 MPa, electric field utilization factor of the electrode configuration 71%, positive and negative impulse waveforms with the rise time of 500 ns, 1.2 μs and 180 μs. The observed discharge processes before the breakdown through the light emission images by the ICCD camera are in good agreement with the streamer mechanism. Under both polarity stresses, discharges are initially concentrated around the tip of the sphere and later pointing towards the earth electrode. However, negative streamers are thinner and more diffuse. As expected, the breakdown voltages for negative polarity are lower than those for positive polarity regardless of the gas pressure and shape of the applied impulse voltage. The breakdown voltage is increased with shortening the rise time of pulse waveforms. As a substitute for SF₆, N₂ gas under pressures above 0.3 MPa can reach the standard rated withstand voltage for 24 kV C-GIS.     

Inhibiting surface flashover for space conditions using magneticfields

The influence of DC and pulsed magnetic fields on dielectric surface breakdown using pulsed test voltages is investigated for space conditions. Prediction from the saturated surface avalanche breakdown model and the experimental results show magnetic insulation effects i.e. an increase of the flashover voltage at magnetic-field amplitudes as low as 0.1 T. The insulation effects depend on the dielectric material, ambient pressure, surface roughness and presence of background plasma. In order to achieve magnetic insulation without a background plasma, it is sufficient to apply the magnetic field to the cathode region only     

Breakdown of gas gaps in a nonuniform electric field at a subnanosecond voltage pulse rise time

The influence of the nitrogen pressure on the breakdown voltage in a nonuniform electric field is studied. Voltage pulses with nanosecond and subnanosecond rise times are applied to the gas gap. Simultaneously with the application of voltage pulses, supershort avalanche electron beam pulses are observed behind a foil anode. It is found that, when a runaway electron beam is generated and voltage pulses have a subnano-second rise time, the breakdown voltage rises as the nitrogen pressure decreases from 9 × 10⁴ to 1 × 10² Pa. Experimental data are in good agreement with pulsed breakdown analytical curves.     

Investigation of intense electromagnetic transient phenomenon andPaschen curves for hydrogen and helium in subnanosecond regime

One of the major drivers of pulsed power innovation is ultrawide-band technology. Subnanosecond risetimes with nanosecond or less pulse durations place this technology in a temporal regime that corresponds to microwave frequencies. These ultrawide-band devices have pushed pulsed power technology into a parameter space where there is little published data on breakdown. This paper describes the experimental determination of the Paschen curve for two gases under the application of intense, transient, electric fields. This experiment utilized the Hindenberg series of hydrogen gas switched pulsers at the Air Force Research Laboratory located at Kirtland Air Force Base. The Paschen curves for hydrogen and helium are presented. For subnanosecond risetime pulses, there are typically very few free electrons in the discharge space generated by external radiation sources such as cosmic rays. The occurrence of cosmic ray ionization in the gap is unlikely in such a short period of time. Therefore, electric field emission plays a very important role in these discharges. However, a small number of discharges are effected by ionization from external radiation, with the resulting data lying along classic Paschen curves. As a verification of this effect, an intense continuous ultraviolet (UV) source was utilized for supplying seed electrons and the expected Paschen curves of hydrogen and helium were obtained     

Influence of solitary gas bubbles on the electrical breakdown of transformer oil

The influence of solitary gas bubbles on the breakdown voltage of transformer oil is studied experimentally. It is shown that discharges periodically arise in bubbles at fields lower than the oil breakdown field.

     

单脉冲电光开关击穿时间延迟及抖动的减小方法

减小单脉冲等离子体电极普克尔盒电光开关击穿时间延迟与抖动问题是提高大口径电光开关性能的关键。利用紫外线照射在阴极上的外光电效应,使阴极产生次级电子发射,形成稳定的初始电子流,在高压脉冲作用下普克尔盒内的初始电子产生快速繁流放电,使盒内氦气击穿。实验证明该方法可以减小开关的击穿时间延迟及抖动,使击穿时间延迟平均下降了36%,平均抖动时间下降88%。     

The influence of electron density on the formation of streamers inelectrical discharges triggered with ultrashort laser pulses

In an ongoing program using ultrashort laser pulses to provoke discharges in air over considerable distances at electric fields below breakdown threshold, we have studied the conditions for the onset of streamers in such laser-produced plasmas, both experimentally and through numerical simulations. The results demonstrate the importance of the electron density and of its gradient on the generation of streamers. Also, a significant reduction of the breakdown voltage for a 30 cm plane-plane gap in air was observed with a laser pulse energy of 15 mJ. Finally, a direct comparison of laser-induced breakdown in air and in nitrogen shows the influence of electron attachment to oxygen on the discharge process