A scanning drift tube apparatus for spatiotemporal mapping of electron swarms

A "scanning" drift tube apparatus, capable of mapping of the spatiotemporal evolution of electron swarms, developing between two plane electrodes under the effect of a homogeneous electric field, is presented. The electron swarms are initiated by photoelectron pulses and the temporal distributions of the electron flux are recorded while the electrode gap length (at a fixed electric field strength) is varied. Operation of the system is tested and verified with argon gas; the measured data are used for the evaluation of the electron bulk drift velocity. The experimental results for the space-time maps of the electron swarms - presented here for the first time - also allow clear observation of deviations from hydrodynamic transport. The swarm maps are also reproduced by particle simulations.