Formation and structure of primary and secondary streamers in positive pulsed corona discharge - effect of oxygen concentration and applied voltage

Primary and secondary streamers of positive pulsed corona discharge are observed in a point-to-plane gap using a short-gated intensified CCD camera in an air-like environment. The influences of oxygen concentration and applied voltage on the properties of both streamers are presented. It is shown that the propagation velocity, the diameter, and the shape of the streamers are strongly influenced by the oxygen concentration. In pure nitrogen, the primary streamer shows branching with a diameter of about 0.2-0.4 mm, while in air, the branching disappears almost completely and the shape of the primary streamer becomes quite smooth with a diameter of more than 1 mm. After the arrival of the primary streamer at the cathode, a secondary streamer develops from the anode toward the cathode as far as the middle of the gap. The propagation length of the secondary streamer increases approximately linearly with the applied voltage. It is shown that the ratio of the energy consumed by the secondary streamer to the whole energy consumed by the discharge increases with the applied voltage.