The effect of photoemission on the streamer development and propagation in short uniform gaps

Results are presented for the time evolution of photoemission in a 0.1 cm parallel-plane gap in atmospheric pressure air when a positive dc voltage is applied at one of the electrodes. The hydrodynamic set of equations is solved using the finite-element flux-corrected transport method in two dimensions. The time evolution of the electron distribution at the cathode and the variation of the spread of the electrons are examined during the avalanche, the avalanche-to-streamer transition and streamer propagation stages. Finally, the effect of the variation of the photoemission coefficient on the field distribution and the current waveform are presented.