On the formation of the anode space of a short-time high-intensity electric discharge

Abstract

The formation of the anode region was studied by a new method. Stratified electrodes permitted the magnitude of the thermal flow to the electrodes to be changed while keeping the anode material the same, and thus a distinction could be made between the influence of the properties of the electrode material and that of the composition of the plasma on the contraction. The experimental results proved the dependence of the formation of the anode region on the physicalthermal properties of the anode material and confirm the author's earlier hypothesis on the causes of contraction. They also explain some of the other effects connected with the formation of a discharge, such as the change in contraction with time, and with the motion of electrodes.