Operation Resistance of the Scandate Electrodes Exposed to the High-Current Pulsed Discharge Impact in Xenon

Abstract

The paper analyzes operation resistance of the pulsed xenon lamp scandate cathode. It provides a detailed analysis of the factors affecting the electrode working surface and considers the effect of cathode design emission material, emitter physical and chemical properties, plasma-forming medium composition and pulse discharge parameters on the erosion. Considerable attention is paid to the cathode manufacture technology by the isostatic pressing of powder consisting of 97 % (weight) of molybdenum and 3 % (weight) of barium scandate. The studied gas-discharge lamp design and electric power supply are analyzed in detail. Based on the obtained current pulse oscillograms and the cathode working surface design dimensions, the current load on the studied electrode was found at 2.64 kA/cm². Resource testing made it possible to study the effect of electrode erosion on the quartz shell transparency and configuration of the cathode working part. It was established that by the end of the pulsed lamp service life, the cathode spherical surface was transforming into a plane with many drops of molybdenum on the electrode end part. Electron microscopy and energy-dispersive analysis was used to find that duringthe gas-discharge lamp operation, the electrode surface in contact with the plasma was depleted of the activating additive with formation of the hollow cavities. At the same time, barium oxide was migrating longitudinally from the cathode body depth to the working surface during the service life

The work was financially supported by the Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises in the Scientific and Technical Sphere (contract no. 20GRE-S18/91616)

Please cite this article in English as:

Gavrish S.V., Potapenko A.O., Puchnina S.V., et al. Operation resistance of the scan-date electrodes exposed to the high-current pulsed discharge impact in Xenon. Herald of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Series Instrument Engineering, 2024, no. 3 (148), pp. 4--21 (in Russ.). EDN: REKKSY

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