Abstract: | Close to the cathode in an arc discharge, or to the surface of a probe operating on the ionic branch of its characteristic, conditions are obtained under which the Langmuir layer freely passes ions coming from the plasma, while the reverse ion flow is virtually zero. The plasma density, ion distribution, and electric fieid-strength close to the electrode are found in the present paper. The extrapolated length is evaluated for the plasma density. The absolute value of the electric field strength increases logarithmically at the boundary with the electrode.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, Vol. 11, No, 2, pp. 4–6, March–April, 1970. |