ISSN 1063-780X, Plasma Physics Reports, 2022, Vol. 48, No. 11, pp. 1261–1272. © The Author(s), 2022.

This article is an open access publication.

Russian Text © The Author(s), 2022, published in Fizika Plazmy, 2022, Vol. 48, No. 11, pp. 1102–1114.

LOW-TEMPERATURE
PLASMA

Comparative Analysis of the Parameters

of the Normal and Abnormal DC Glow Discharges
S. T. Surzhikova, b, *
a
Ishlinsky Institute for Problems in Mechanics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119526 Russia
b Dukhov All-Russia Automatics Research Institute, Moscow, 127055 Russia

*e-mail: surg@ipmnet.ru
Received August 25, 2022; revised September 5, 2022; accepted September 6, 2022

Abstract—A comparative numerical study of the parameters of normal and abnormal direct current glow dis-
charges between two flat disk electrodes with a radius of 3 cm in a 1-cm-high electric discharge gap is per-
formed. A two-dimensional axisymmetric drift-diffusion model of the glow discharge is used for the numer-
ical simulation, including equations for the transfer of electrons and molecular nitrogen ions, and the Poisson
equation for finding the electric potential in the discharge gap taking into account the regions of the space
charge and the positive column. Abnormal discharges are obtained when the radius of the cathode decreases.
A numerical procedure is proposed for smoothing local maxima of the electric field strength near the bound-
aries of the abnormal glow discharge cathode, which ensures the stability of the solution and the weak effect
on the calculated data. The numerical simulation results of the electrodynamic structure of normal and
abnormal glow discharges are presented.

Keywords: normal and abnormal DC glow discharges, drift–diffusion model of glow discharge
DOI: 10.1134/S1063780X22700337

1. INTRODUCTION on the electrodes decreases, the intensity of ionization

The normal direct current glow discharge has processes decreases and, thus, a plasma structure is
attracted the attention of researchers for more than formed, in which a balance is maintained between
100 years. The classical scheme of such a discharge is losses and reproduction of charges.
shown in Fig. 1. Its typical parameters: electromotive
force of the power supply ε ~ 200–1000 V and electric
currents through the discharge gap I ~ 0.1–10 mA.
On the one hand, a normal glow discharge is an
example of the simplest plasma formation, quite easily
implemented in physical laboratories [1], on the other
hand, this discharge is a typical object of the self-orga-
nization of a localized plasma structure, which exists Anode
owing to the competition between dissipation and the
appearance of charged particles in an external electric ε
field. Figure 1 shows that the normal discharge has H
finite transverse dimensions in the radial direction. Positive
column
When the voltage drop between the electrodes Vd
increase, the radius of such a column increases, and
when Vd decreases, the radius decreases. It is import-
Сathode Rc R
ant that the discharge burning between the electrodes,
together with the external electrical circuit, which
includes a source of electromotive force ε and ohmic
resistance R0 , is an example of a self-regulating system
R0
with a positive feedback. When the voltage on the elec-
trodes increases, the intensity of ionization processes
increases and, as a result, the current through the dis-
charge gap increases. But this leads to a decrease in the Fig. 1. Calculation scheme for normal and abnormal glow
voltage drop across the electrodes. When the voltage discharges.

1261
1262 SURZHIKOV
The main feature of a normal glow discharge is that
with a change in the radial dimensions of such a col-
umn owing to a variation in the voltage drop across the
electrodes, the current density near the symmetry axis
changes slightly. This phenomenon is called law of
normal current density or Gel law [2]. Of course, this
regularity exists only within certain limits of the glow
discharge. parameters In [3, 4] (see also the extensive
bibliography therein), it was shown that the experi-
mentally measured parameters of a normal glow dis-
charge in its axial regions, namely, the voltage drop
across the cathode layer Vn, the current density on the
symmetry axis jn, the thickness of the cathode layer dn,
are predicted by the one-dimensional Engel–Steen-
beck theory [5] with good accuracy
 
Vn = 3B ln 1 + 1  , V,
A  γ
−14 AB ( μi p )(1 + γ )
2
jn
= ×
2
5.92 10 , A/(cm Torr),
p 2
ln (1 + 1/γ )
ln (1 + 1/γ )
dn p = 3.78 , cm Torr,
A
where А, В are approximation coefficients in the for-
mula for the first Townsend coefficient, which deter-
mines the efficiency of the impact ionization of mole-
cules by electrons (see formula (9) below), γ is the
coefficient of secondary electron emission at the inter-
action of ions with the cathode surface, μi is the ion
mobility in a glow discharge, р is pressure. In later
works [6–8], where the normal glow discharge was
studied in the two-dimensional geometry using math-
ematical simulation, it was shown that the calculated
data obtained using the drift-diffusion model are close
to the results of the Engel–Steenbeck theory.
Another feature of a normal glow discharge is its
surprisingly complex longitudinal structure. At least
seven sections of the longitudinal structure of a nor-
mal glow discharge are identified, each of which pro-
vides the conditions for its existence. The physical
processes in each of the regions (with increasing dis-
tance from the cathode): Aston dark space, cathode
glow, cathode dark space, negative glow, Faraday dark
space, positive column, and anode dark space were
analyzed in [4, 6].
The main elements of the structure of a normal
glow discharge have been studied quite well using the
so-called drift-diffusion model [7, 8], the detailed
derivation of equations of which is given in [6]. This
model well describes the so-called local processes of
ionization, recombination and diffusion in a glow dis-
charge, which is sufficient for simulating its main inte-
gral characteristics: the radial dimensions of the cur-
rent column, the dimensions of the cathode and
anode regions of the space charge, where there is an
increased density of ions and electrons, respectively,
density current at the cathode and anode, total current
PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS
through the discharge gap and voltage drop between
the electrodes.
There are two other classes of computational-theo-
retical models that are used, but noticeably less, to
study the structure of DC glow discharges. These are
the so-called ambipolar model and nonlocal kinetic
models. The ambipolar model [6] assumes the
absence of space charge regions, i.e., in fact, only the
positive column of the glow discharge is considered.
Using kinetic models, nonlocal kinetic processes are
studied, first of all, the region of the electron beam in
the immediate vicinity of the cathode, and the region
of the Faraday dark space [9].
The ambipolar model has found its application in
problems of applied physics of gas discharges. Its main
drawback is associated with the need for a special for-
mulation of the boundary conditions near the cathode
and anode, where the specified model is not applica-
ble because are space charge regions. However, due to
its simplicity and high computational efficiency, the
ambipolar model is quite often used in plasma aerody-
namics problems [6, 10, 11], where it was possible to
obtain a good description of experimental data [12, 13]
with its help.
As already noted, the drift-diffusion model makes
it possible to describe the space charge regions near
the cathode and anode. However, the use of this
model in conjunction with the equations describing
the motion of a partially ionized gas encounters two
obstacles. The first obstacle is the high complexity of
solving the problem with a space charge. The second
obstacle is that the glow discharge in plasma aerody-
namics burns in an anomalous regime due to the finite
size of the electrodes. The gas flow often “blows off”
the cathode and anode spots to the boundaries of the
electrodes. It was established that high electric fields
arise at the boundaries of the electrodes, leading to a
breakdown of the gas, and during the numerical simu-
lation, to the instability of the resulting solution.
In this work, we study changes in the structure of a
normal glow discharge during its gradual transition to
an abnormal discharge due to an artificial decrease in
the radius of the cathode surrounded by a dielectric
surface. For these purposes, the drift-diffusion model
of the discharge in the axisymmetric formulation is
used. The design scheme is shown in Fig. 1. First, the
problem of finding the parameters of a normal glow
discharge is solved for given parameters of the external
electric circuit and the geometry of the electric dis-
charge gap, which is characterized by the electrode
radius R = 3 cm and the distance between the elec-
trodes H = 1.0 cm. In the calculations, the gas pressure
was set constant p = 5 Torr, the gas temperature was
300 K. A series of subsequent calculations was carried
out for a gradually decreasing radius of the cathode,
Rc = 1.0, 0.6, 0.4 and 0.2 cm (the rest of the cathode
surface was assumed to be dielectric), which led to the
Vol. 48 No. 11 2022
 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE PARAMETERS 1263

transition of a normal glow discharge into an abnor-
mal one.
For each of the calculated options, the electrody-
namic structure of the discharge and, in particular, the
electric field voltage and the density of charged parti-
cles near the boundary of the cathode were studied. An
additional series of calculations was performed using
the procedure for numerical smoothing of the electric
field strength near the cathode boundary, which imi-
tates technological methods for smoothing the elec-
trode boundaries in experiments.
2. MATHEMATICAL STATEMENT
OF THE PROBLEM
The system of equations for the computational
drift-diffusion model of a glow discharge is formulated
as follows [6, 14]:
∂ne
+ div Γ e = α ( E /p ) p Γ e − β ni ne = ω
 i, (1)
∂t
∂ni
+ div Γ i = α ( E /p ) p Γ i − β ni ne = ω
 i, (2)
∂t
div ( grad ϕ) = 4πe ( ne − ni ) , (3)
where Γ e = −De grad ne − neμeE ; Γ i = −Di gradni +
niμiE; j = e (Γ i − Γ e ); E = −grad ϕ; ne, ni is the density
of electrons and ions in 1 cm3; e is the charge of elec-
tron, E and ϕ are the electric field strength vector and
its potential; Γ e , Γ i are electron and ion flux density
vectors; De, Di are diffusion coefficients of electrons
and ions; μe, μi are mobilities of electrons and ions;
onto the x axis; R, H are coordinates of the boundary
of the computational domain in r and x directions. The
boundary conditions on the electrodes for charged
particles are approximate. The admissibility of their
use was discussed in [8], where it was shown by
numerical experiments that the complication of the
boundary conditions does not significantly affect the
calculation results in a wide range of glow discharge
parameters, while increasing the risk of numerical
instabilities. In the boundary conditions Eq. (5), there
is still an undetermined voltage drop across the dis-
charge gap Vd, which includes the components of the
voltage drop on the cathode and anode layers, and on
the positive column. To determine it, it is necessary to
involve the conditions in the external circuit (see
Fig. 1). Under the conditions of steady-state burning
of a glow discharge, it is possible to write the obvious
relation
R
ε − Vd
= 2π Γe ( r, x = 0) r d r,
eR0  (8)
0
which postulates the equality of the sum of voltage
drops across the resistance R0 and discharge gap to the
electromotive force ε.
The computational model is derived to study the
structure of a glow discharge in molecular nitrogen at
pressures p = 1−20 Torr, therefore, the following val-
ues of the coefficients included in the mathematical
formulation of the problem were set:
μe p = 4.4 × 10 ,
5
μi p = 1.45 × 10 (Torr cm )/(V s),
3 2

α = α ( E /p ) is the coefficient of impact ionization of

molecules by electrons (the first Townsend coeffi- β = 2 × 10−7 cm3 /s, (9)
cient), E = E ; β is the ion–electron recombination α = A exp  − B  (cm Torr)−1,
coefficient. The total volumetric rate of the electron  
production in the right-hand side of Eqs. (1) and (2) p  E /p 
ω i is determined by the difference between the ioniza- where A = 12 (cm Torr)−1, B = 342 V/(cm Torr).
tion and recombination rates. The empirical formula Eq. (9) for the first
When solving the system of equations of the drift- Townsend coefficient is recommended in [3] for the
diffusion model, an orthogonal cylindrical coordinate following range of field strength-to-pressure ratios:
system is used. The boundary conditions for 100 < E /p < 600 V/(cm Torr).
Eqs. (1)−(3) have the form
The diffusion coefficients were determined from
∂ni
x = 0, Γe, x = γΓi, x , = 0, ϕ = 0; (4) the Einstein relations
∂x
De = μeTe, Di = μiTi ,
∂ne
x = H, = 0, ni = 0, ϕ = Vd; (5) where Te, Ti is the temperature of electrons and ions,
∂x
eV, respectively.
∂ne ∂ni ∂ϕ
r = 0, = = = 0; (6) It is necessary to make general remarks regarding
∂r ∂r ∂r the choice of the given semi-empirical electrophysical
∂ϕ parameters. The main thing is that in order to estimate
r = R, ne = ni = 0, = 0. (7) the eligibility of using the presented numerical values
∂r
and approximations, one should take into account the
Here, Vd is the voltage drop across the discharge gap, objective function of the constructed calculation
Γe, x , Γi, x are electron and ion flux density projections model, which belongs to the class of heuristic models

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

1264 SURZHIKOV

Normal GD, R = 3.0 cm (а)

Ni: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01

Ne: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01
1.0

y, cm 0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Normal GD, R = 3.0 cm (b)
Ex: −3.00E+00 −2.69E+00 −2.38E+00 −2.06E+00 −1.75E+00 −1.44E+00 −1.13E+00 −8.13E−01 −5.00E−01

Er: 4.00E−02 8.00E−02 1.20E−01 1.60E−01 2.00E−01 2.40E−01 2.80E−01 3.20E−01 3.60E−01 4.00E−01
1.0
y, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Normal GD, R = 3.0 cm (c)
Fi: 4.00E+01 8.00E+01 1.20E+02 1.60E+02 2.00E+02 2.40E+02 2.80E+02 3.00E+02 3.60E+02 4.00E+02

Ratelon: 1.00E−03 2.77E−03 7.69E−03 2.13E−03 5.92E−02 1.64E−01 4.55E−01 1.26E+00 3.50E+00
1.0
y, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Fig. 2. Distributions of the density of ions (Ni, left) and electrons (Ne, right) (a), normal ( E x , left) and radial (E r , right) electric field
components (b), electric potential (Fi = ϕ , left) and ionization rate (RateIon = ω  i /Ω , right) (c) in the normal glow discharge.

based on a number of semi-empirical functions. The
mobility coefficients of electrons and ions, and the
recombination coefficient, were chosen in accordance
with the recommendations [3, 4] for molecular nitro-
gen for similar conditions in the discharge. Tempera-
tures of electrons and ions were considered constant,
Te = 1 eV and Ti = 0.026 eV. The effect of possible vari-
ations of the electron temperature in the range of
Te = 1–10 eV was studied, and the selection of an
empirical dependence for the characteristic electron
temperature in a glow discharge of the type under con-
sideration, was performed in [5, 16, 17]. No funda-
mental effect on the calculated parameters of the nor-
mal glow discharge was noted.
At the same time, a noticeable effect of the used
approximation of the ionization coefficient on the
integral characteristics of the discharge (total current
through the discharge, voltage drop across the gas-dis-
charge gap) was established in the calculations. There-
fore, when tending to achieve numerical closeness of
the calculated and experimental data, the choice of
this approximation should be treated very carefully.
The same applies to the choice of the coefficient of
secondary ion–electron emission ( γ ~ 0.01−0.1). In
general, the calculation results using the proposed
numerical model are in good agreement with the
Engel–Steenbeck theory for the parameters of a nor-
mal glow discharge and with our own experimental
data [1, 5, 8].
Details of the numerical solution of the equations
of the drift-diffusion model of a glow discharge are
given in [6].
3. NUMERICAL SIMULATION RESULTS
The initial data in all calculation options were the
same: р = 5 Torr, ε = 1000 V, R0 = 300 kΩ. Figure 2
shows the electrodynamic structure of a normal glow

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE PARAMETERS 1265

Normal glow discharge 1000

25

800 Fi
20 Ne |Ex|
Ni

Fi, V, |Ex|, V/cm

600
15
Ne , N i

400
10

200
5

0 0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 x, cm
x, cm
Fig. 3. Distributions of densities of ions (Ni) and electrons Fig. 4. Distribution of the electric potential (Fi = ϕ) and
(Ne) along the symmetry axis of the normal glow dis- absolute value of the axial component of the electric field
charge. (|Ex|) along the symmetry axis of the normal glow dis-
charge in the gas-discharge gap.

discharge in an electric discharge gap of height H =

1 cm and radius R = 3 cm. The distributions of ion and
electron densities (Fig. 2a) clearly show the main
structural elements of the discharge: a cathode layer
with an increased ion density and a positive column, a
region of almost quasi-neutral plasma. Here and
below, the densities of charged particles are referred to
the quantity n0 = 109 cm–3. The anode layer, in which
the ion density tends to zero, is located in the immedi-
ate vicinity of the anode. This is the region of the neg-
ative space charge.
Figure 2b shows distributions of the axial and radial
components of the electric field strength referred to
the ε/H value, and Fig. 2c (left) shows the distribution
of the electric potential. In the cathode layer, i.e., in
the region of positive space charge, there is a sharp
increase in the electric potential.
We note that the distribution of the electric poten-
tial shown in Fig. 2c (left) clearly indicates a potential
charge is largely due to the competition between ion-
ization and diffusion processes in the radial direction.
The visible boundary of the current column in Fig. 2a
(right) approximately corresponds to the electron cur-
rent line, to the right of which diffusion makes the loss
of electrons irreplaceable, and to the left, ionization
and drift allow electrons to close the electrical circuit.
Figure 3 shows the distribution of the electron and
ion density along the symmetry axis of the discharge.
In these figures, the regions of the cathode and anode
20
18
16
3
14
1
12
j, mA/cm2

well in which there is a current layer of a normal glow

discharge. The comparison of data in Figs. 2c (left) 10
and 2b (right) explains the local maximum of the
radial component of the electric field strength at the 8
upper right-hand boundary of the cathode layer. Here, 3
6
the electric potential decreases in the radial direction.
We emphasize this fact and it will be shown below that 4
2 1
the situation changes to the opposite one in the abnor-
2 2
mal discharge.
Figure 2c (right) shows the distribution of the ion- 0 0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00
ization rate in a normal glow discharge, referred to the r, cm
quantity Ω = n0μeε/H . It can be seen that gas ioniza-
Fig. 5. Distribution of the current density on the anode
tion also occurs in the anode layer and, to a much (solid lines) and cathode (dotted lines) along the electrode
lesser extent, in the positive column. It was shown in radius in the gas-discharge gap: 1—normal discharge, 2, 3—
[15] that the current column in the normal glow dis- abnormal discharge at Rc = 0.6 and 0.2 cm, respectively.

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

1266 SURZHIKOV

Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.6 cm (а)

Ni: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01

Ne: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01
1.0

x, cm 0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.6 cm (b)
Ex: −3.00E+00 −2.69E+00 −2.38E+00 −2.06E+00 −1.75E+00 −1.44E+00 −1.13E+00 −8.13E−01 −5.00E−01

Er: −3.00E−01 −2.63E−01 −2.26E−01 −1.89E−01 −1.53E−01 −1.16E−01 −7.87E−02 −4.19E−02 −5.00E−03
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.6 cm (c)
Fi: 4.00E+01 8.00E+01 1.20E+02 1.60E+02 2.00E+02 2.40E+02 2.80E+02 3.20E+02 3.60E+02 4.00E+02

Ratelon: 1.00E−03 2.48E−03 6.13E−03 1.52E−03 3.76E−02 9.31E−02 2.31E−01 5.71E−01 1.41E+00 3.50E+00
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Fig. 6. Distributions of densities of ions (Ni, left) and electrons (Ne, right) (a), normal ( E x , left) and radial ( E r , right) electric
field components (b), electric potential (Fi = ϕ, left) and ionization rate (RateIon = ω  i /Ω , right) (c) in the abnormal glow dis-
charge. The radius of the cathode section is Rc = 0.6 cm.

layers are clearly visible, where ion and electron den-
sity reaches ni = 24 × 109 cm–3 and ne = 3 × 109 cm–3,
respectively. In the positive column, the density of
charged particles is ne ≈ ni ~ 6 × 109 cm–3.
Figure 4 shows the distribution of the absolute
value of the electric field strength along the symmetry
axis of the discharge and electric potential. The high-
est electric field strength is observed in the cathode
layer. A much lower increase in the electric field
strength is observed in the anode layer. However, this
increase is sufficient for a noticeable increase in the
ionization rate in this layer. It is also noteworthy that
the electric field strength is Ех ~ 40 V/cm in the quasi-
neutral positive column, which is sufficient to make up
for the loss of electrons by diffusion caused by impact
ionization and the motion of electrons along the field
between the cathode and anode.
Figure 5 shows radial distributions of current den-
sities on the cathode and anode in normal and abnor-
mal glow discharges, which differ quite significantly.
For a normal glow discharge (curves 1), the current
density on the cathode (dotted line) is approximately
four times lower than the current density on the
anode. We note that the current density at the cathode
is a conservative quantity with respect to changes in
the parameters of a normal glow discharge. The cur-
rent density on the anode can change noticeably [6, 8].
The following figures present the results on the
structure of an abnormal glow discharge. The matrix
of calculation results is constructed as follows. Calcu-
lations are performed for successively decreasing cath-
ode radii Rс = 1.0, 0.6, 0.4 and 0.2 cm. The radius of
the anode remained the same, Rс = 3 cm. Figures 6а
and 7а show calculation results for the density of
charged particles, Figs. 6b and 7b those of components

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE PARAMETERS 1267

Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (а)

Ni: 4.00E+02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01

Ne: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01
1.0

x, cm 0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (b)
Ex: −3.00E+00 −2.69E+00 −2.38E+00 −2.06E+00 −1.75E+00 −1.44E+00 −1.13E+00 −8.13E−01 −5.00E−01

Er: −3.00E−01 −2.63E−01 −2.26E−01 −1.89E−01 −1.53E−01 −1.16E−01 −7.88E−02 −4.19E−02 −5.00E−03
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (c)
Fi: 4.00E+01 8.00E+01 1.20E+02 1.60E+02 2.00E+02 2.40E+02 2.80E+02 3.20E+02 3.60E+02 4.00E+02

Ratelon: 1.00E−03 2.48E−03 6.13E−03 1.52E−02 3.46E−02 9.31E−02 2.31E−01 5.41E−01 1.41E+00 3.50E+00
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm

Fig. 7. Distributions of the density of ions (Ni, left) and electrons (Ne, right) (a), normal ( E x , left) and radial ( E r , right) electric
field components (b), electric potential (Fi = ϕ, left) and ionization rate (RateIon = ω  i /Ω , right) (c) in the abnormal glow dis-
charge. The radius of the cathode section is Rc = 0.2 cm.

of the electric field strength, and Figs. 6c and 7c those
of the electric potential and ionization rates for two
radii of cathode Rс = 0.6 and 0.2 cm.
As already noted, a feature of abnormal glow dis-
charges is an increased electric field strength near the
boundaries of the electrodes. This is illustrated in
Fig. 8a, where the distributions of the axial compo-
nents of the absolute value of the electric field strength
along the radius of the cathode section of the dis-
charge are shown for different sizes of cathode. The
local strength maxima correspond to the boundaries of
the cathode sections. The same figure shows the dis-
tribution of the electric potential on the cathode sec-
tion of the glow discharge. It is obvious that ϕ = 0 on
the cathode. Because of the boundary conditions
used, ϕ ≠ 0 on the dielectric surface.
In the abnormal glow discharge with a cathode
radius Rc = 0.6 cm, the current density at the cathode
and anode dropped by two and four times, respectively
(Fig. 5). In this case, the current density on the cath-
ode becomes more uniform along the radius. In the
abnormal glow discharge with a cathode radius Rc =
0.2 cm, the current density on the cathode sharply
increases. This is due to the strong localization of the
cathode spot when it is necessary to maintain the cur-
rent almost at the same level.
We also note features in the distributions of the
electric potential and the radial component of the
electric field strength for an abnormal glow discharge,
which were discussed above. Figures 9b, 9c shows that
the potential increases in the radial direction, and does
not decrease, as it does in a normal glow discharge. As
a consequence, the radial component of the electric
field strength is directed towards the center. However,
this does not fundamentally change the discharge
characteristics.

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

1268 SURZHIKOV

With smoothing, H = 1 cm
10 000 10 000
1 (a)
(b)
8000 8000

Fi, V, |dFi/dx|, V/cm

Fi, V, |dFi/dx|, V/cm

1
2
6000 6000

3 2
4000 4000
4
3
2000 2000
4
5 5

0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0
r, cm r, cm

Fig. 8. Distributions of the axial component of the electric field strength (dashed curves) and electric potential along the cathode
surface without smoothing (a) and with smoothing of the electric field near the cathode surface (b); 1–4: abnormal glow dis-
charge at Rc = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 1.0 cm; 5– normal glow discharge (b).

It has already been discussed that the observed The smoothing procedure was as follows. If
jumps in the electric field strength lead to a sharp smoothing was not used, then the following boundary
increase in the ionization rate in the corresponding conditions were set for the electric potential on the
zones. The physical analogue of this effect is the cathode section:
improvement of conditions for the electrical break-
down of the gas. The numerical simulation procedure ri ≤ Rc : ϕ = 0,
for obtaining a solution becomes much more compli-
∂ϕ
cated. The study of the structure of an abnormal glow ri > Rc : = 0,
discharge has not only a purely scientific motivation, ∂x
but also the need to build computational models for which had the following expression in the finite differ-
problems of plasma aerodynamics. Therefore, we used ence form:
the procedure for smoothing the electric field strength
near the boundaries of the electrodes, which is physi-
cally analogous to rounding the electrode boundaries ri ≤ Rc : αi = 0, βi = 0,
(10)
in a physical experiment. ri > Rc : αi = 1, βi = 0.

Table 1. Integral characteristics of normal and abnormal glow discharges with the discharge chamber radius R = 3 cm
Radius of the cathode,
I, mA Vd , V I, mA Vd, V
cm
Without smoothing the potential With smoothing the potential
Н = 1 cm
3.0 2.10 370
0.6 2.20 349 2.14 359
0.4 2.17 365 2.09 374
0.2 2.03 428 1.82 441
Н = 2 cm
3.0 1.31 605
0.6 1.61 542 1.56 538
0.4 1.58 562 1.49 564
0.2 1.46 620 1.22 639

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 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE PARAMETERS 1269

Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (а)

Ni: 4.00E+02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01

Ne: 1.00E−02 2.33E−02 5.41E−02 1.26E−01 2.93E−01 6.82E−01 1.59E+00 3.69E+00 8.60E+00 2.00E+01
1.0

x, cm 0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (b)

Ex: −3.00E+00 −2.69E+00 −2.38E+00 −2.06E+00 −1.75E+00 −1.44E+00 −1.13E+00 −8.13E−01 −5.00E−01

Er: −3.00E−01 −2.63E−01 −2.26E−01 −1.89E−01 −1.53E−01 −1.16E−01 −7.88E−02 −4.19E−02 −5.00E−03
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm
Abnormal GD, Rc = 0.2 cm (c)
Fi: 4.00E+01 8.00E+01 1.20E+02 1.60E+02 2.00E+02 2.40E+02 2.80E+02 3.20E+02 3.60E+02 4.00E+02

Ratelon: 1.00E−03 2.48E−03 6.13E−03 1.52E−02 3.76E−02 9.31E−02 2.31E−01 5.71E−01 1.41E+00 3.50E+00
1.0
x, cm

0.5

0
−3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
r, cm

Fig. 9. Distributions of the densities of ions (Ni, left) and electrons (Ne, right) (a), normal ( E x , left) and radial ( E r , right) electric
field components (b), electric potential (Fi = ϕ, left) and ionization rate (RateIon = ω  i /Ω , right) (c) in the abnormal glow dis-
charge. The radius of the cathode section Rc = 0.2 cm. The smoothing procedure is used.

It is assumed here that the boundary condition on the where Rδ = Rc − δ, δ = 0.25 or 0.05 cm. In relation-
cathode surface at the points ri is given in the following ships (10)–(12) αi , βi are approximating coefficients
form: of boundary conditions of the first and second kind.
ϕi,1 = αi ϕi,2 + βi , (11) Figure 9 shows the calculation results of the elec-
trodynamic structure of the discharge when using the
where ϕi,1 is the potential on the surface, and ϕi,2 is the procedure for smoothing the axial component of the
electric field strength near the cathode with a radius
potential in the layer of the finite-difference grid clos-
Rc = 0.2 cm.
est to the surface.
The comparison of the given data with smoothing
When using the smoothing procedure, the follow- and without smoothing (Fig. 8) shows that smoothing
ing formulas were applied: has little effect on the distribution of all functions
except, of course, for the electric field strength in the
ri < Rδ : αi = 0, βi = 0, immediate vicinity of the cathode boundary. We
 (r − R )4  attract attention to the fact that from a mathematical
ri ≥ Rδ : αi = 1 − exp − i 4 δ  , (12) point of view, this smoothing procedure specifies a
 δ  smooth transition from the boundary condition of the
ri > Rc : αi = 1, βi = 0, first kind for the electric potential to the boundary

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

1270 SURZHIKOV

500 No smoothing
(а) 10
(а)
Rc = 3.0 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm
400 Rc = 0.6 cm
8 Rc = 0.4 cm
Rc = 0.2 cm

300
6
Fi, V

Ne
200
Rc = 3.0 cm 4
Rc = 0.2 cm
Rc = 0.4 cm
100 Rc = 0.6 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm 2

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

r, см
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
500 x, cm
(b)
With smoothing
10
(b)
400 Rc = 3.0 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm
Rc = 0.6 cm
8 Rc = 0.4 cm
Rc = 0.2 cm
300
Fi, V

6
200
Ne

Rc = 3.0 cm
Rc = 0.2 cm
Rc = 0.4 cm 4
100 Rc = 0.6 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

r, cm

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

Fig. 10. Distribution of the electric potential (Fi = ϕ) along
the symmetry axis of the normal and abnormal glow dis-
charge without smoothing (a) and with smoothing of the
electric potential distribution near the cathode (b).
condition of the second kind in some boundary region
of the cathode.
Figure 10 shows the distributions of the electric
potential along the symmetry axis of the current col-
umn for different radii of the cathode, obtained with-
out and with the smoothing procedure. Attention is
drawn to the closeness of these distributions, except
for the parameters of the abnormal glow discharge at
Rc = 0.2 cm. This is not surprising, since the discharge
structure already changes quite significantly at very
small cathode radii (Fig. 9). A further decrease in the
cathode radius aggravates the combustion regime even
stronger.
x, cm
Fig. 11. Distribution of electron densities along the sym-
metry axis of the normal and abnormal glow discharge
without smoothing (a) and with smoothing of the electric
potential distribution near the cathode.
Figures 11 and 12 show axial distributions of the
density of electrons and ions, which also confirm the
conclusions that, up to certain limits of the decrease in
the radius of the cathode, the parameters of the abnor-
mal glow discharge change insignificantly, but at the
smallest radius of the cathode, a new combustion
regime practically sets in, which is characterized by a
sharp increase in the electric potential in the cathode
layer and, consequently, the ionization rates.
All distributions indicate a weak effect of the
smoothing procedure on the main discharge charac-

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 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE PARAMETERS 1271

No smoothing To complete the analysis of the abnormal dis-

60
(а) charge, Table 1 shows its integral characteristics, such
as the voltage across the electric discharge gap and the
Rc = 1.0 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm
total current through the discharge channel, which
Rc = 0.6 cm also confirm the above conclusions. The structure of
Rc = 0.4 cm
Rc = 0.2 cm normal and abnormal glow discharges was calculated
40 at the increased interelectrode distance, Н = 2 cm. We
note a regular increase in the voltage drop across the
discharge gap, which is necessary to maintain the dis-
Ni

charge burning in a larger volume and a slight decrease

in the total current through the discharge, associated
20 with increased losses due to radial diffusion. The con-
clusions about the admissibility of using the proposed
smoothing procedure for an abnormal discharge
remain valid.

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 4. CONCLUSIONS

x, cm
With smoothing A comparative numerical study of the parameters
60 of normal and anomalous direct current glow dis-
(b) charges between two flat disk electrodes with a radius
Rc = 3.0 cm
Rc = 1.0 cm of 3 cm in a 1 cm high electric discharge gap has been
Rc = 0.6 cm
Rc = 0.4 cm performed. Abnormal discharges were obtained by
Rc = 0.2 cm decreasing the radius of the cathode, while the rest of
40 the cathode surface was filled with a dielectric.
For numerical simulation, a drift-diffusion model
of a glow discharge was used together with an equation
Ni

for an external electrical circuit, including an ohmic

resistance and a DC glow discharge power supply.
20 Taking into account the external electric circuit pro-
vided positive feedback with respect to the determina-
tion of the voltage drop across the electrodes after cal-
culating the total electric current through the dis-
charge gap.

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
x, cm
Fig. 12. Distribution of the ion densities along the symme-
try axis of the normal and abnormal glow discharges with-
out smoothing (a) and with smoothing (b) of the electric
potential distribution near the cathode.
teristics. Figure 8 shows the axial distributions of the
absolute value of the axial component of the electric
field and potential along the surface of the cathode
section for different electrode radii. It is clearly seen
here that the smoothing procedure used very effec-
tively cuts off local jumps in the electric field strength
near the cathode boundary, while changing the aver-
age values on the cathode surface not very strongly.
All distributions indicate a weak effect of the
smoothing procedure on the main discharge charac-
teristics, while changing the average values on the
cathode surface not very strongly.
1.0 It is shown that local maxima of the electric field
strength arise in an anomalous direct current glow dis-
charge near the cathode boundaries, which lead to
breakdown phenomena (avalanche gas ionization)
and instability of the numerical solution of the equa-
tions of the drift-diffusion model.
In order to expand the range of initial data for
which a steady-state solution is obtained, a procedure
for smoothing the electric field strength at the cathode
boundaries is proposed, the physical analogue of
which can be rounding the electrode boundaries in a
real experiment. It is shown that the stability of
numerical simulation results of the discharge to the
application of the smoothing procedure is high and
this procedure has no strong effect on the calculated
electrodynamic parameters.
In the numerical simulation of abnormal glow dis-
charges, conditions are established under which the
parameters of the abnormal discharge and the normal
discharge start to differ strongly.

PLASMA PHYSICS REPORTS Vol. 48 No. 11 2022

1272 SURZHIKOV
FUNDING
The work was supported by the Russian Science Foun-
dation (project no. 22-11-00062).
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The author declares that he has no conflicts of interest.
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Translated by L. Mosina
Vol. 48 No. 11 2022