Evolution From Cathode-Initiated to Anode-Initiated Flashover in Vacuum

This paper presents experimentally flashover evolution initiated from cathode to anode via an intensified charge-coupled device camera under the condition of adjusting electric field distribution. These results suggest that a flashover process across insulator surface in vacuum is greatly affected by the local electric field at both cathode and anode triple junctions. Flashover can be initiated at either cathode or anode. This paper might be helpful to clarify the dispute about how the flashover is actually initiated.