https://doi.org/10.1051/epjap/2009202
Theory and application of plasma diode equilibria with beam electrons and a fixed particle background of negative charge
1
Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia
2
Physikalisches Institut, Universität Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany
Corresponding author: hans.schamel@uni-bayreuth.de
Received:
3
June
2009
Revised:
17
September
2009
Accepted:
28
October
2009
Published online:
11
December
2009
The effect of a uniformly distributed, immobile, charged particle background on the stationary states of a plasma diode with beam electrons is studied. Whereas a positively charged particle background results in an increase of the space-charge limit of the electron current across the diode and brings in new branches of equilibria, a negatively charged background decreases the current up to zero current level due to a complete reflection of beam electrons within the diode region. This effect can be used for the design of fast switches.
PACS: 52.75.Kq – Plasma switches / 85.45.-w – Vacuum microelectronics / 29.27.Bd – Beam dynamics; collective effects and instabilities / 52.65.Ff – Fokker-Planck and Vlasov equation / 52.27.Jt – Nonneutral plasmas
© EDP Sciences, 2009
