Glow discharge current-voltage curve English

An electric discharge is the release and transmission of electricity in an applied electric field through a medium such as a gas (ie., an outgoing flow of electric current through a non-

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typica ...

medium).American Geophysical Union, National Research Council (U.S.). Geophysics Study Committee (1986) ''The earth's electrical environment''. National Academy Press, Washington, DC, p. 263.

Applications

The properties and effects of electric discharges are useful over a wide range of magnitudes. Tiny pulses of current are used to detect ionizing radiation in a Geiger–Müller tube. A low steady current can be used to illustrate the spectrum of gases in a gas-filled tube. A

neon lamp A neon lamp (also neon glow lamp) is a miniature gas discharge lamp. The lamp typically consists of a small glass capsule that contains a mixture of neon and other gases at a low pressure and two electrodes (an anode and a cathode). When suffi ...

is an example of a gas-discharge lamp, useful both for illumination and as a voltage regulator. A

flashtube A flashtube (flashlamp) is an electric arc lamp designed to produce extremely intense, incoherent, full-spectrum white light for a very short time. A flashtube is a glass tube with an electrode at each end and is filled with a gas that, when tr ...

generates a short pulse of intense light useful for photography by sending a heavy current through a gas arc discharge. Corona discharges are used in photocopiers. Electric discharges can convey substantial energy to the electrodes at the ends of the discharge. A spark gap is used in internal combustion engines to ignite the fuel/air mixture on every power stroke. Spark gaps are also used to switch heavy currents in a

Marx generator A Marx generator is an electrical circuit first described by Erwin Otto Marx in 1924. Its purpose is to generate a high-voltage pulse from a low-voltage DC supply. Marx generators are used in high-energy physics experiments, as well as to simulat ...

and to protect electrical apparatus. In electric discharge machining, multiple tiny electric arcs are used to erode a conductive workpiece to a finished shape.

Arc welding Arc welding is a welding process that is used to join metal to metal by using electricity to create enough heat to melt metal, and the melted metals, when cool, result in a binding of the metals. It is a type of welding that uses a welding power ...

is used to assemble heavy steel structures, where the base metal is heated to melting by the heat of the arc. An electric arc furnace sustains arc currents of tens of thousands of amperes and is used for steelmaking and production of alloys and other products.

Examples

Examples of electric discharge phenomena include: *

Brush discharge A brush discharge is an electrical disruptive discharge similar to a corona discharge that takes place at an electrode with a high voltage applied to it, embedded in a nonconducting fluid, usually air. It is characterized by multiple luminous w ...

Dielectric barrier discharge Dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) is the electrical discharge between two electrodes separated by an insulating dielectric barrier. Originally called silent (inaudible) discharge and also known as ozone production discharge or partial dischar ...

* Corona discharge * Electric glow discharge * Electric arc *

Electrostatic discharge Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is a sudden and momentary flow of electric current between two electrically charged objects caused by contact, an electrical short or dielectric breakdown. A buildup of static electricity can be caused by tribocha ...

* Electric discharge in gases * Leader (spark) *

Partial discharge In electrical engineering, partial discharge (PD) is a localized dielectric breakdown (DB) (which does not completely bridge the space between the two conductors) of a small portion of a solid or fluid electrical insulation (EI) system under hi ...

* Streamer discharge * Vacuum arc *

Townsend discharge The Townsend discharge or Townsend avalanche is a gas ionisation process where free electrons are accelerated by an electric field, collide with gas molecules, and consequently free additional electrons. Those electrons are in turn accelerated and ...

St. Elmo's fire St. Elmo's fire — also called Witchfire or Witch's Fire — is a weather phenomenon in which luminous plasma is created by a corona discharge from a rod-like object such as a mast, spire, chimney, or animal hornHeidorn, K., Weather Elemen ...

* Lightning *

Electric organ An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the pump organ, harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has sinc ...

References

Electrical phenomena Plasma physics {{plasma-stub

Applications

Examples

See also

References