Theory of the initial stage of low pressure arc discharge with thermionic cathode

A quantitative kinetic theory of the initial stage of Knudsen discharge development that allows macroscopic characteristics to be related to the cross section of elementary processes is proposed. A quantitative description of the initial discharge stage at low pressures requires solving of a system of kinetic equations for the charge particle distribution function, taking into account volume ion generation and the Poisson equation for the self-consistent electric field potential in the gap. Effective numerical-analytical methods have been developed for solving these equations under steady-state conditions as well as for calculating the transient process that results from applying an impulse voltage between electrodes