Prediction of the characteristics of cathode and near-cathode phenomena in a vacuum arc cathode spot. Analytical model

In the authors´ preceding work they constructed physical models of the processes occurring in the cathode spot of a vacuum arc, combining these models with a more or less rigorous mathematical statement of the problem. The solutions to the problems were found numerically using computer simulation. Here, they develop approximate analytical models, distinguishing the principal physical phenomena responsible for a given process in the cathode spot. Such models are based on the idea that the processes in the cathode spot of a vacuum arc are nonsteady-state and cyclic in nature. The analytical results are compared with the predictions of numerical simulations and with available experimental data