Constant of electron impact ionization in a weakly ionized argon plasma in crossed E×B fields

Abstract

A theoretical model is proposed which allows one to calculate the electron energy distribution function, the average electron energy, and the constant of electron impact ionization of atoms for an argon plasma. The model considers both elastic and inelastic collisions that determine the electron energy distribution in crossed E×B fields. It is shown that the electron energy distribution is strongly different from the Maxwellian one in the case of no magnetic field, whereas in the cases of a strong magnetic field it asymptotically approximates the Maxwellian distribution.