Formation of a Micropinch and Generation of Multiply Charged Ions at the Front of a Current-Carrying Plasma Jet
- Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Siberian Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk, 664033 (Russian Federation)
- Irkutsk State University, Irkutsk, 664003 (Russian Federation)
The formation of a neck in the cathode plasma jet in the initial stage of a low-voltage vacuum spark is investigated experimentally and theoretically. X-ray bursts corresponding to an electron temperature of 150-300 eV are detected. With the use of a pinhole camera, it is found that an emitting region less than 1 mm in size is located near the cathode. The free expansion of a current-carrying cathode plasma jet with a current growing in accordance with the experimentally observed time dependence is simulated using a hydrodynamic model. It is shown that the neck forms at the front of the plasma jet due to the plasma compression by the magnetic self-field. In the constriction region, the plasma is rapidly heated and multiply charged ions are generated. The calculated spatial and temporal variations in the electron temperature and average ion charge are close to the measured dependences over a wide range of the discharge parameters.
- OSTI ID:
- 20718272
- Journal Information:
- Plasma Physics Reports, Vol. 31, Issue 10; Other Information: Translated from Fizika Plazmy, ISSN 0367-2921, 31, 909-922 (No. 10, 2005); DOI: 10.1134/1.2101971; (c) 2005 Pleiades Publishing, Inc; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); TN:; ISSN 1063-780X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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