Re: Gap turn off at zero current and TVI

["Malcolm Watts" <malcolm.watts-at-wnp.ac.nz> (by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>)]

Hi Richie,

> Original Poster: "R.E.Burnett" <R.E.Burnett-at-newcastle.ac.uk> 

<snip> 
> First I tried running the circuit with only the RQ gap inside the box,
> and the L and C outside in the room.  The interference was bad.  I then
> put the whole tank circuit inside the box and fed in HV from outside
> through two wirewound resistors.  The box was bolted along all seams,
> but the interference was just the same.  I couldn't believe it.
> I am building a battery powered HV source so I can seal the whole lot
> in the box.  Seriously.

If interference is the problem you could try using a common mode 
filter whose centre point is connected to the metal of the box at the 
point where the leads emerge. How are you circumventing the problem 
of a shorted turn? It may turn out also that capacitive coupling of 
the interference to the secondary coil which may act as a simple 
radiator could kill the idea.

Ultimately the problem may stem from stepped ionization in the gap 
which might be impossible to get rid of. By that I mean that the 
quantized nature of the current carrying ions could turn out to be a 
fundamental characteristic.

Malcolm