Vol. 14, issue 11, article # 16

Abstract:

The discussion on whether an impeded discharge with a grid anode, i.e., an open discharge, is a photoelectron one is continued. From the most general point of view and based on new experimental data, formation of electron beams (e-beams) under various glow discharge conditions is considered. The author returns to the conclusion he has drawn earlier that the electron emission necessary for high-efficiency e-beam generation is created in the open discharge due to bombardment of the cathode with fast atoms generated in the process of ion recharging. The latter fact has been reliably established long ago for the case of open discharge with a single-hole grid, i.e., in the discharge tube with a hollow anode.