On the relationship of drift-currents and potential changes to the quantum Hall effect

The drift current flowing perpendicular to an applied electric field is calculated. The system consists of a confined two-dimensional electron gas in a normal magnetic field. It is shown that the drift current depends strongly on how the electric potential changes as a function of the position. It is concluded that a theory of the Hall potential including electron interactions is needed.     

On the electron energy distribution in the gas discharge positive column: Langmuir paradox

The results of calculations of electron drift characteristics in a dc spatially inhomogeneous periodic electric field are presented. It is shown that the effect of field inhomogeneities on the drift velocity and the average electron energy is insignificant under typical conditions of experiments with gas-discharge plasma at low gas pressures. However, the intensity of the processes of excitation, ionization, and plasma spatial distribution are strongly affected by the inhomogeneity (variance) and field variation behavior. It is shown that the electric field inhomogeneity in the gas discharge positive column leads to maxwellization of the electron energy distribution function.     

Der Stromverlauf einer Elektronenlawine mit Diffusion

The electron current of an avalanche in a homogenous electric field is calculated taking into account the influence of the diffusion of the electrons and the boundary effect of the anode. The ionisation rate is assumed to be proportional to the current density. The results are significant in measurements of electron diffusion and electron drift velocities.     

Research on the origin of negative effect in uniform doping GaN-based Gunn diode under THz frequency

The transport properties of GaN-based uniform doping Gunn diode are calculated by an ensemble Monte Carlo method. The drift velocity, electron density, and electric field distribution as a function of time in the device are illustrated under direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC) bias condition. With the help of port current, the relationship between electron transport status and port current can be acquired, which will be useful to understand the origin of negative differential resistance and guide the device design. Different from the traditional opinion, the maximum current do not appear at the same time when electron accumulation domain arrives at device anode. The reason is that when electron accumulation domain comes into heavily doped anode, the velocity will be decelerated a lot for highly ionized impurity scattering, and the electrons in the domain will be used to neutralize positive ion region which provides the electrons during formation of the domain. Some researchers believe that the electrons in the domain come from heavily doped cathode region, but our simulation shows clearly that the electrons come from heavily doped anode side. Finally, the AC simulation shows the possibility of negative differential résistance in GaN diode under THz frequency. What is more, AC simulation result has the same tendency with DC simulation.     

Two-dimensional model of the Penning discharge in a cylindrical chamber with the axial magnetic field

The drift–diffusion model of a Penning discharge in molecular hydrogen under pressures of about 1 Torr with regard to the external electric circuit has been proposed. A two-dimensional axially symmetric discharge geometry with a cylindrical anode and flat cathodes perpendicular to the symmetry axis has been investigated. An external magnetic field of about 0.1 T is applied in the axial direction. Using the developed drift–diffusion model, the electrodynamic structure of a Penning discharge in the pressure range of 0.5–5 Torr at a current source voltage of 200–500 V is numerically simulated. The evolution of the discharge electrodynamic structure upon pressure variations in zero magnetic field (the classical glow discharge mode) and in the axial magnetic field (Penning discharge) has been studied using numerical experiments. The theoretical predictions of the existence of an averaged electron and ion motion in a Penning discharge both in the axial and radial directions and in the azimuthal direction have been confirmed by the calculations.     

Influence of working gas properties on MWPC anode wire modulation effect

For MWPCs used for X-ray position detection, simulation studies of the anode wire modulation effect of the detector were carried out using the Garfield program. Different gas mixtures were used as the working gas in the simulation, so as to obtain the influence of the X-ray cross section and electron diffusion coefficient of the working gases on the anode wire modulation effect of an MWPC with anode wire spacing of 2 mm. Results show that, though a working gas with higher X-ray cross section implies a larger average drift distance for the ionized electrons, such gas mixtures are of little use in improving the anode wire modulation effect of MWPCs. It is found that the transverse electron diffusion coefficient is the determining factor for the extent of the anode wire modulation effect in the detector.     

Electron thermal diffusion instability and standing striations in the plasma of a dc discharge in molecular gases

A linear theory of waves in the positive column of dc discharge in molecular gases is presented. Full account is taken of local electron hydrodynamics (s.c. quasi-homogeneous equations), which is derived on the basis of a local non-equilibrium distribution of the electron gas. The production term on the right-hand-side of the ion balance equation gives the familiar ionization wawes, but the ion drift enhanced by the high value of the logitudinal field strength, together with the modification of the pertubed electric field incurred by the electron thermal diffusion, causes the dispersion curve to inersect thek-axis. This provides a natural explanation of the amplified low frequency anode directed wave commonly observed in molecular gas discharges as well as of the standing striation pattern. Numerical examples are given for the case of nitrogen.     

Interplay of parallel electric field and trapped electrons in kappa-Maxwellian auroral plasma for EMEC instability

In this paper, propagation characteristics of electromagnetic electron cyclotron(EMEC) waves based on kappa-Maxwellian distribution have been investigated to invoke the interplay of the electric field parallel to the Earth's magnetic field and auroral trapped electrons. The dispersion relation for EMEC waves in kappa-Maxwellian distributed plasma has been derived using the contribution of the parallel electric field and trapped electron speed. Numerical results show that the presence of the electric field has a stimulating effect on growth rate, which is more pronounced at low values of wave number. It is also observed that as the threshold value of trapped electron speed is surpassed, it dominates the effect of the parallel electric field and EMEC instability is enhanced significantly. The electric field acts as another source of free energy, and growth can be obtained even in the absence of trapped electron drift speed and for very small values of temperature anisotropy. Thus the present study reveals the interplay of the parallel electric field and trapped electron speed on the excitation of EMEC waves in the auroral region.     

Längsfeldstärke,Elektronentemperatur, mittlere Neutralgasdichte,Ionenstromdichte auf die Wand und mittlere Entladungsstromdichte in der Freifallsäule bei hohem Ionisationsgrad

On the basis of a foregoing paper new theoretical results for the positive column at low pressure and strong ionization, especially for discharges in noble gas ion lasers, are given. The mean velocity v_n0 of the neutral atoms reemitted from the wall is taken into account. The electric conductivity is calculated for an argon plasma. The formulas connecting the electron temperature, the mean neutral gas density, and the electric field strength are derived. The electron temperature, the axial electric field intensity, the degree of ionization, the axial electron drift velocity, the ion flux to the wall, and the force density causing the main part of gas pumping along the column are calculated as functions of the product of the mean current density and the tube radius, and of v_n0 for argon. The axial drift velocity of the electrons is still smaller than the mean thermal electron velocity for high discharge currents, except at very low gas pressures. In general, the ion flux to the wall is not directly proportional to the discharge current. The factor for the determination of the charged particle density by means of probe measurements at the wall is discussed. The self-magnetic field affects the discharge only at high electron temperature, high degree of ionization, and relatively large tube radius, i.e. at high current density and low gas pressure in not too narrow discharge channels.     

The Current Distribution and the Magnetic Pressure Profile in a Vacuum Arc Subject to an Axial Magnetic Field

The steady-state electric-current distribution and the magnetic pressure in a uniform conducting medium, flowing in a cylindrical configuration between two circular electrodes, was determined by solving the magnetic field transport equation with a superimposed axial magnetic field. This medium models the interelectrode plasma of the diffuse mode metal vapor vacuum arc. The results show the following. a) The electric current and the flux of the poloidal magnetic field are constricted at the anode side of the flowing plasma. Most of the constriction takes place within a boundary layer, with a characteristic length of 1/Rme, where Rme is the magnetic-Reynolds number for axial electron flow. b) The electric-current constriction inversely depends on K?, where K? is the azimuthal surface current density which produces the axial magnetic field. c) The magnetic-pressure profile shows a radial pinch force in most of the interelectrode region, but in the anode boundary layer it is axially directed, thus retarding the plasma flow. d) The peak of the magnetic pressure is at the anode, and its amplitude directly depends on K?. As K? increases, the peak location moves toward the anode center.     

Effect of inter-miniband tunneling on current resonances due to the formation of stochastic conduction networks in superlattices

We study the effects of inter-miniband electron tunneling and electric field domains on the current–voltage and conductance–voltage curves of biased semiconductor superlattices under the action of a magnetic field that is tilted relative to the plane of the layers. For this geometry, electrons in the superlattice minibands exhibit a unique type of stochastic semiclassical motion. At certain critical values of the electric field within the superlattice layers, the stochastic trajectories change abruptly from fully localized to completely unbounded, and map out an intricate web-like mesh of conduction channels in phase space. Delocalization of the electron paths produces a series of strong resonant peaks in the electron drift velocity versus electric field curves. We use these drift velocity characteristics to make self-consistent drift-diffusion calculations of the current–voltage and differential conductance–voltage curves of the superlattices, which reveal strong resonant features originating from the sudden delocalization of the stochastic single-electron paths. We show that this delocalization has a pronounced effect on the distribution of space charge and electric field domains within the superlattices. Inter-miniband tunneling greatly reduces the amount of space-charge buildup, thus enhancing the domain structure and both the strength and number of the current resonances.     

Electric field driven plasmon dispersion in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

We present a theoretical study on the electric field driven plasmon dispersion of the two-dimensional electron gas(2DEG)in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors(HEMTs).By introducing a drifted Fermi–Dirac distribution,we calculate the transport properties of the 2DEG in the AlGaN/GaN interface by employing the balance-equation approach based on the Boltzmann equation.Then,the nonequilibrium Fermi–Dirac function is obtained by applying the calculated electron drift velocity and electron temperature.Under random phase approximation(RPA),the electric field driven plasmon dispersion is investigated.The calculated results indicate that the plasmon frequency is dominated by both the electric field and the angle between wavevector and electric field.Importantly,the plasmon frequency could be tuned by the applied source–drain bias voltage besides the gate voltage(change of the electron density).     

Interaction between glow discharge plasma and dust particles

The effect of dust particle concentration on gas discharge plasma parameters was studied through development of a self-consistent kinetic model which is based on solving the Boltzmann equation for the electron distribution function. It was shown that an increase in the Havnes parameter causes an increase in the average electric field and ion density, as well as a decrease in the charge of dust particles and electron density in a dust particle cloud. Self-consistent simulations for a wide range of plasma and dust particle parameters produced several scaling laws: these are laws for dust particle potential and electric field as a function of dust particle concentration and radius, and the discharge current density. The simulation results demonstrate that the process of self-consistent accommodation of parameters of dust particles and plasma in condition of particle concentration growth causes a growth in the number of high-energy electrons in plasma, but not to depletion of electron distribution function.     

Electron diamagnetic effect on axial force in an expanding plasma: experiments and theory

The axial force imparted from a magnetically expanding current-free plasma is directly measured for three different experimental configurations and compared with a two-dimensional fluid theory. The force component solely resulting from the expanding field is directly measured and identified as an axial force produced by the azimuthal current due to an electron diamagnetic drift and the radial component of the magnetic field. The experimentally measured forces are well described by the theory.     

Surface‐Driven Asymmetry and Instability in the Acceleration Region of Hall Thruster

It has been shown experimentally that the channel wall material has a substantial effect on the behaviour of Hall discharges. For this reason, the radial profile inside the Hall thruster SPT‐100 is investigated in detail. This is done by a one‐dimensional fully kinetic self‐consistent Particle‐in‐Cell model between the two walls in the acceleration region of the channel. A detailed Monte Carlo probabilistic model for secondary electron emission is implemented as boundary module. Using the local field approximation, two different operative conditions (axial electric field E_z =100 V/cm and 300 V/cm) have been simulated. For high discharge voltage case, a strong radial asymmetry and a stream instability propagating all along the radial domain are detected, while in the low voltage case a stable classical situation is recovered. The critical parameters for triggering this unstable regime are the electron azimuthal drift energy and the induced secondary electron emission, while the saturation mechanism is the increasing of the temperature of the initially cold secondary‐electrons. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The effect of plasma drift on the electromagnetic cyclotron instability

It is shown that the drift of plasma across a homogeneous magnetic field causes the generation of a wave electric field which, for waves propagating along the magnetic field in the whistler mode, is in the direction of the magnetic field. This leads to Landau damping of the wave field by the background electron distribution, simultaneously with amplification via the electromagnetic cyclotron instability. The drift velocity of the plasma for zero net growth of a whistler mode signal is calculated. It is suggested that such a process occurs in the equatorial region of the magnetosphere during a geomagnetic storm and accounts for the missing band of emissions at half the equatorial gyrofrequency.     

Fluid Simulation of a Cusped Field Thruster

The cusped field thruster is a kind of newly developed electric propulsion device. The electric field at the channel exit and the low frequency oscillation were measured by former experiments. While the formation mechanism of them have not been fully interpreted yet. Through studying two distinguishing typical electron paths in the thrusters, a fluid model is built up along two electron paths, and then the model is completed by synthetically analyzing the effect of two electron paths. Time‐averaged electric potential distribution, anode current oscillation curve and time‐synchronized atom density and ion density distribution are obtained by simulation. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Generation of a submillisecond electron beam with a high-density current in a plasma-emitter diode under the conditions of open plasma boundary emission

The generation of a 250-μs-wide electron beam in a plasma-emitter diode is studied experimentally. A plasma was produced by a pulsed arc discharge in hydrogen. The electron beam is extracted from a circular emission hole 3.8 mm in diameter under open plasma boundary conditions. The beam accelerated in the diode gap enters into a drift space in the absence of an external magnetic field through a hole 4.1 mm in diameter made in the anode. The influence of electron current deposition at the edge of the anode hole on the beam’s maximum attainable current, above which the diode gap breaks down, is studied for different accelerating voltages and diode gaps. The role of processes occurring on the surface of the electrodes is shown. For an accelerating voltage of 32 kV, a mean emission current density of 130 A/cm² is achieved. The respective mean strength of the electric field in the acceleration gap is 140 kV/cm. Using the POISSON-2 software package, the numerical simulation of the diode performance is carried out and the shape of steady plasma emission boundaries in the cathode and anode holes is calculated. The influence of the density of the ion current from the anode plasma surface on the maximum attainable current of the electron beam is demonstrated.     

The external field effect on transient radiation of an ultrarelativistic particle

An external field determining the law of particle motion was shown to change the intensity of transient radiation in the ultrarelativistic case. The angular and frequency distribution of transient radiation in an external field was obtained. The possibility of determining the energy of an ultrarelativistic particle from the measured azimuthal asymmetry of particle transient radiation in an external field was discussed.