Electrical Breakdown Studies of Partial Pressure Argon Under KHz Range Pulse Voltages
Metadata Field | Value | Language |
---|---|---|
dc.contributor.advisor | Kirkici, Hulya | |
dc.contributor.author | Lipham, Mark | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2010-01-12T20:53:01Z | |
dc.date.available | 2010-01-12T20:53:01Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2010-01-12T20:53:01Z | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10415/2044 | |
dc.description.abstract | Electronics operating in a partial vacuum may experience a gaseous breakdown when strong electric fields are present. The breakdown voltage for a gas decreases as the pressure decreases from atmospheric conditions and reaches a minimum. After this minimum breakdown voltage, it starts to increase as pressure further decreases for a given fixed electrode spacing. This idea was first expressed in the early 1900’s by Paschen Law. An increase in operating frequency can also cause a breakdown to occur at lower applied voltage levels. In this work, the breakdown characteristics for Argon are studied in partial vacuum from 0.1 Torr to 3 Torr. First, a dc analysis is performed for electrodes with point-plane and point-point geometries. A pressure sweep analysis is then performed for the same electrode geometries with a unipolar pulsed signal for fixed frequency in the range of 20-200 kHz with a fixed duty cycle of 50%. A frequency sweep is then performed for a range of fixed pressures from 0.1 Torr to 3 Torr. Lastly, a duty cycle sweep is performed from 10% to 90% for the same range of fixed pressures and frequencies. Data is captured during each gaseous breakdown event for analysis. The breakdown voltage characteristics are discussed as a function of the applied signal and environmental pressure. | en |
dc.rights | EMBARGO_NOT_AUBURN | en |
dc.subject | Electrical Engineering | en |
dc.title | Electrical Breakdown Studies of Partial Pressure Argon Under KHz Range Pulse Voltages | en |
dc.type | thesis | en |
dc.embargo.length | NO_RESTRICTION | en_US |
dc.embargo.status | NOT_EMBARGOED | en_US |