Temporal variation of electron density in a laser-perturbed discharge plasma and its relationship to the optogalvanic signal

By the method of microwave cavity resonance the authors have measured the temporal variation of the lctron density following the laser excitation of neon glow-discharge plasma, and the result is compared with the optogalvanic signal. It is found that the optogalvanic signal does not represent the change in the electron density; i.e., the time resolution is poor and the absolute magnitude is smaller by an order.