CURRENT OSCILLATIONS IN A GAS-FILLED DIODE WITH A PULSE DISCHARGE.

Current oscillations have been investigated experimentally in the circuit of a cylindrical diode of diameter 20 mm with a 2-mm-diam. oxide cathode; the diode was filled with argon, krypton, or xenon at a pressure of 0. 2-30 torr. A pulsed discharge was excited by square voltage pulses of duration 8 mu s, repetition rate 400 Hz, and amplitude 600-1200 v, which were applied to an insulated electrode 1 mm in diameter. The range of the oscillations and their frequency spectrum have been determined. The oscillations have been found to appear at some time tau //d after the application of the voltage pulse. The delay time tau //d corresponds to the formation time of a potential well in the diode and correlates with the electron-atomic collision time.