SPATIALLY DEPENDENT ENERGY DISTRIBUTIONS FOR ELECTRONS DRIFTING THROUGH A GAS IN A UNIFORM ELECTRIC FIELD

Abstract

The steady-state distribution function is obtained for electrons initially emitted from a point source into a neutral gas and which subsequently drift under the influence of a uniform dc electric field while undergoing elastic collisions with the gas atoms. The usual approximations are retained of regarding the distribution function as almost spherical in velocity space and of regarding the fractional energy gain or loss by an electron upon collision as small. However, the terms in the Boltzmann transport equation involving spatial derivatives of the distribution, which are usually assumed small in comparison to the field and collision terms, are treated exactly. The distribution function is given as a sum of energy modes, each of which decay with distance from the source.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1963
Accession Number
AD0406904

Entities

People

  • James H. Parker

Organizations

  • Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Boltzmann Equation
  • Coefficients
  • Current Density
  • Differential Equations
  • Diffusion Coefficient
  • Distribution Functions
  • Eigenvalues
  • Electric Fields
  • Electron Density
  • Electron Energy
  • Electrons
  • Equations
  • Geometry
  • Government Procurement
  • Measurement
  • Partial Differential Equations
  • Transport Properties

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Finite Element Method (FEM) for solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs)
  • Plasma Physics / Magnetohydrodynamics

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics
  • Space
  • Space - Hall-Effect Thruster