The influence of the gas-temperature on the behaviour of the positive column of a neon glow discharge and its description by a nonlinear equivalent circuit

The concentration of metastable atoms can significantly be influenced by changing the gas temperature [1]. Starting from a set of balance equations, consisting of the balance equation for the electrons, the balance equation for excited atoms and the current balance equation the impedance behaviour is calculated in dependence on the gas temperature. Based on a theoretical description of the discharge plasma a nonlinear equivalent circuit representing the behaviour of the positive column at higher gas-temperatures (250 K - 500 K) is developed. The circuit posseses only positive parameters for the reactances which can be calculated by means of the elementary processes occuring in the discharge plasma. Experimental investigations of the static current/voltage characteristic and the impedance behaviour support the proposed circuit model.