Pulsed action on a shock wave in the case of self-localized high-current surface discharge in front of the shock-wave front

A study was conducted to investigate pulsed action on a shock wave in self-localized high-current surface discharge in front of the shock-wave front. The investigations used a shock tube having a cross-section area of 24×48 mm2, supplied with a discharge chamber of the same internal cross section. The Mach number of the shock wave and the initial pressure in the low-pressure chamber varied within the ranges from 2-5 and from 5-100 Torr. The transverse pulsed surface discharge was realized on the upper and lower walls of the shock-wave channel. It was observed that the duration of the discharge-current pulse and the time of the plasma luminescence were 200 ns within the frequency range of 380-700 nm. The discharge being investigated was localized on the surfaces of opposing channel walls in the regions bounded by the shock-wave front and by the ends of the electrode regions, while the luminescence was redistributed towards the region ahead of the shock-wave front.