Gas breakdown and its scaling law in microgaps with multiple concentric cathode protrusions
Abstract
This paper reports gas breakdown characteristics in microgaps with multiple concentric protrusions on the cathode in the transition from the Townsend to the subnormal glow discharge regime, using a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model. The effects of the protrusion aspect ratio, height, and protrusion spacing on the breakdown voltage are investigated. The results show that when the protrusion spacing is small, the shielding effect can play a more important role in the breakdown voltage rather than the protrusion aspect ratio; the breakdown voltage is more sensitive to the protrusion height and can be assessed by the shortest gap distance. Increasing the protrusion spacing decreases the shielding effect, which lowers the breakdown voltage in both low- and high-pressure regimes. It is found that the breakdown scaling law still holds in geometrically similar microgaps with multiple cathode protrusions despite the electric field distortion.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jan 07, 2019
- Source ID
- 10.1063/1.5077015
Entities
People
- Janez Krek
- John Verboncoeur
- Peng Zhang
- Yangyang Fu
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- Michigan State University
- United States Department of Energy