Field enhancement factor dependence on electric field and implications on microscale gas breakdown: Theory and experimental interpretation

School of Engineering, University of California Merced - Merced, CA 95343, USA

Received: 27 September 2015
Accepted: 3 December 2015

Abstract

In this letter, we obtain a better understanding of effective field enhancement factors (β_eff) in the context of microscale gas breakdown with specific emphasis on its dependence on applied electric field. The theoretical dependence of β_eff on electric field for various hemi-ellipsoidal asperities indicates that the value of β_eff decreases with increasing electric field. The interpretation of experimental data using a typical one-dimensional modified Paschen law indicates a qualitatively similar electric field dependence even though the data could not be completely explained using a single effective asperity size. The values of β_eff extracted from seven independent experimental datasets for microscale breakdown of argon and air are shown to be consistent and an empirical dependence on electric field is determined.