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Published on: September 26, 2014
Spontaneous pattern formation in an effectively one-dimensional dielectric-barrier discharge system
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546, USA.
Abstract:
In a dielectric-barrier discharge between diametrically opposite sides of a narrow tube, discharge filaments stabilize at regular intervals along the tube's length. Three types of periodic patterns are observed, as is a disordered state in which filaments fire at apparently random positions and times. Time-resolved current measurements indicate that for each spatial pattern, a particular number of discharge stages occur during the voltage half-cycle. A preliminary model of the pattern-formation dynamics is described, motivating further work on time-resolved imaging and investigations of surface charge distributions.
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