The Amplification and Transit Time of an Electron Avalanche Traversing a Uniform Electric Field Gap†

The amplification (A) and transit time (T) of an electron avalanche whilst crossing a gap have been calculated in terms of the electron ionization coefficient (α) and the electron drift velocity (v) with allowance for both electron diffusion and electrode effects. It has been shown that when both α and v are calculated from experimental values for A and T, that errors greater than the experimental error may occur if diffusion and electrode effects are neglected.