Abstract
Measurements and calculations of temperature, densities and field-strength-current-characteristics of cascaded arcs (0.15 and 0.3 cm radius) burning in Helium under normal pressure are reported. It is shown that the evaluation of measured arc data assuming Saha equilibrium is not in agreement with the detailed solution of the balance equations. The temperature of electrons and heavy particles as well as the density of electrons and neutrals must be determined as independent variables from the rate equation for ground state neutrals, from the equation of state, and from the energy balance of the electron gas and of the total plasma. The latter equation can be replaced by relations between measured intensities and the state variables. The deviations from Saha equilibrium are mainly caused by diffusion of neutral particles into the arc core and of charged particles into the opposite direction. The theoretical results derived from the balance equations are compared with spectroscopic line intensity and line width measurements. The agreement is good even if the equilibrium conditions are strongly violated.
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