Transient glow discharge in nitrogen after the breakdown

The duration of transient glow discharge and the energy dissipated in the gap during the glow phase have been measured in nitrogen. These measurements have been made for gaps up to 7 mm at gas pressures of 40-150 Torr by static breakdown. It has been shown that the transition from the glow to the arc starts to develop in the discharge region near the cathode. The dependence of the glow duration on gas pressure is explained assuming that the criterion for the glow-to-arc transition is that the surface density of energy dissipated in the dark space during the glow phase reaches a certain quantity.