Introduction to the Kinetics of Glow Discharges
Description
Electric glow discharges (glows) can be found almost everywhere, from atmospheric electricity to modern plasma technologies, and have long been the object of research. Most books on this subject mainly describe the fundamental foundations on the basis of a fluid (hydrodynamic) approximation. In that approach the electron distribution function (EDF) depends on the local plasma parameters at a given point of space in a given time. However, under conditions of a gas-discharge plasma the EDF is usually strongly non-equilibrium and the fluid approximation cannot describe some important phenomena and processes.
The appropriate approach for describing such highly non-equilibrium systems and phenomena is physical kinetics. Work in this area has progressed rapidly and a consistent kinetic description of the simplest glow discharges has become possible. This book provides simple illustrations of the basic physical mechanisms and principles that determine the properties of these categories of discharges so the reader can successfully participate in scientific and technical progress.
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Introduction References 1 Ionization in the electric field References 2 Microwave breakdown 2.1 Microwave breakdown due to diffusion 2.2 Microwave breakdown in the presence of a low dc field References 3 Breakdown in a uniform dc field 3.1 The secondary cathode emission 3.2 The Townsend condition 3.3 The ignition potential 3.4 Cathode boundary conditions 3.5 The time evolution of the breakdown 3.6 Limitations of the avalanche breakdown mechanism References 4 The general structure of a discharge 4.1 The current-voltage characteristic 4.2 Basic characteristics and spatial structure of the glow References 5 The Townsend and subnormal modes 5.1 The current-voltage characteristic 5.2 Townsend discharge instability References 6 The 'short' glow discharge 6.1 The fluid model of the cathode region 6.2 A model of discharge with nonlocal ionization 6.2.1 Basic concepts of the model 6.2.2 Main results from the model 6.2.3 The second field reversal 6.3 Influence of side walls on plasma properties 6.4 Active control of plasma properties 6.5 Is negative glow plasma negatively charged? 6.6 The anode region References 7 Positive column of dc glow 7.1 Main properties of dc glow positive column 7.2 Positive column in atomic gases 7.3 The Langmuir paradox 7.4 PC in electronegative gases References
