Glow-to-Arc Transition

The conditions for the glow-to-arc transition at moderately high pressures (50 to 1300 mm Hg) have been studied experimentally. It is found that over the whole pressure range the transition is certain when the field at the cathode reaches a critical value. This result is shown to be consistent with a field emission mechanism for the transition. Calculations of the critical field based on this process are found to be in good agreement with the fields which are determined experimentally.