Conductivity of cesium-seeded atmospheric pressure plasmas near thermal equilibrium
Measurements were made of the electric conductivities of gaseous mixtures formed by the addition of small fractions of cesium vapor to nitrogen, helium, neon, or argon. The mixtures studied were maintained near thermal equilibrium at temperatures in the 1500 to 2000 deg K range and a total pressure of 1 atm. The cesium vapor pressures ranged over two decades, from 0.1 to 10 torr. The apparatus consists, in essence, of two heated zones connected by a slow flow. The first zone is a low-temperature (200 to 400 deg C) oven where the body-gas flow picks up the cesium vapor. The second zone is a small electrically heated furnace (1250 to 1850 deg C) containing a diode test section. The principal measurements taken were the seeding temperature, furnace temperature, and voltages and currents in the test section. The results exhibit variations with temperature, seeding pressure, and gas species that correlate reasonably well with simple theory and values for electron collision frequencies and cross sections taken from the literature. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- General Electric Research Lab., Schenectady, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- Sponsor not identified
- NSA Number:
- NSA-17-033216
- OSTI ID:
- 4875584
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-24--7; GE-63-RL--3278G
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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