Electrical Breakdown of a Gas between Coaxial Cylinders at Microwave Frequencies

Abstract

The criterion for breakdown of a low pressure gas at microwave frequencies is that the ionization rate equal the diffusion rate for electrons. This principle is applied to compute the breakdown of air in coaxial cylinders using previously reported high frequency ionization coefficient data obtained from breakdown experiments between parallel plates. Agreement between computed and measured results at 9.6-cm wave-length supports the validity of the above criterion for breakdown. The method of computation is illustrative of the general problem of computing breakdown fields for tubes of arbitrary shape and field configuration using ionization coefficient data obtained from uniform field breakdown.