Re: Spark Dissipation

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>" <acmq-at-compuland-dot-com.br>

Tesla list wrote:

>...
>  I also see no signs of spark "growth" using successive RF bursts in my
>  SSTC system.
>  The one shot spark length is as long as the length when firing in high
>  speed repetition.
>...

I think that spark growth occurs at each cycle of the RF waveforms,
and not at successive bursts, that are much farther apart. In really
high-power systems, succesive streamers really tend to follow similar
channels, because they tend to start at the same point and follow
previously heated and ionizer air, but this doesn't go very far.
The streamers diverge from the previous path after some distance.
The usual CW coils also produces streamers in bursts, but with less
energy in each and at high "break rate". The streamers grow affected
mainly by energy in each burst only, with reduced effect from the
break rate.

Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz