Structure of a nonequilibrium high-frequency discharge

The problem for a one-temperature plasma is considered with allowance for the finite ionization rate. It is shown that in the developed nonequilibrium case the leading effect of ambipolar electron diffusion and ionization lag lead to a qualitatively different picture as compared with the equilibrium case. In particular, the heat release zone covers only a relatively small leading part of the ionization zone with a relatively low (n_e n_ef) electron concentration.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 3, pp. 161–169, May–June, 1989.The authors thank A. A. Barmin and A. G. Kulikovskii for useful discussions.