An integral approach to considering the evolution of a microwave streamer

We present a model of a microwave streamer based on analytical relations that allows its evolution to be described both during its elongation along the external electric field and after its stop. The equations for the electric field amplitude at the streamer center, the equations that describe the dynamics of the longitudinal and transverse sizes, and the equations of plasma chemical kinetics are self-consistently solved in terms of this model. Comparison with numerical 2D simulations of the electrostatic stage in air is made. We derive simple analytical relations that allow the power released in a plasma channel to be estimated on the fly. Almost the entire energy contribution is shown to be made after the termination of the streamer elongation.