Electrical Conductivity of Highly Ionized Argon Produced by Shock Waves

Abstract

Shock tube techniques for the production of shock waves up to Mach number 20 have been developed and reported previously by Resler, Lin, and Kantrowitz, J. Appl. Phys. ²³, 1390 (1952). These techniques can produce high temperature gas with accurately known enthalpy (e.g., in argon 25 percent ionization has been produced following an incident shock). Spectroscopic studies of high temperature argon produced this way by Petscheck, Rose, Glick, Kane, and Kantrowitz, ``Spectroscopic studies of highly ionized argon produced by shock waves,'' J. Appl. Phys. 26, 83 (1955), showed that equilibrium ionization can be reached in the time available in these experiments (of the order of 100 microseconds). This paper reports a study of the electrical conductivity of high temperature argon produced by shock waves. At low degrees of ionization (less than 10⁻³ for argon), the diffusivity of electrons and thus the gas conductivity is determined by the cross section for electron‐atom collisions which has been measured by mobility and by scattering techniques. At high degrees of ionization (larger than 10⁻³ for argon) the diffusion of electrons is primarily limited by long range Coulomb interaction with positive ions and thus is independent of the chemical nature of the gas. Theoretical treatments of this case have been given by Chapman and Cowling, Cowling, and by Spitzer and Härm. At intermediate degrees of ionization additive effects of both of these resistivity mechanisms would be expected. Preliminary measurements with electrodes indicated large surface resistances. These effects were avoided by the development of an electrodeless technique in which the moving ionized gas deflected a magnetic field. Resultant voltages induced in a search coil were related to the conductivity distribution in the gas following the shock wave. At temperatures greater than 8000–10 000°K (depending on the gas density) the gas conductivity quickly reached a maximum value (up to 80 mhos/cm). The maximum conductivity obtained at these high temperatures agreed within 10 percent with theoretical expectations. It also agreed well with measurement of electrical resistivity in the cesium discharge by F. L. Mohler, Bur. Standards J. Research 21, 873 (1938). At lower temperatures the oscillograms indicated that the conductivity was still rising at the end of the hot region. Under these conditions maximum conductivities reached were much lower than the theoretical values. The ionization rate obtained varied considerably with the gas density. At the highest temperatures the conductivity declined quickly from the maximum value and the rate of decline could be correlated with the expected cooling due to recombination radiation. Indications of a high conductivity associated with luminous shock fronts were obtained.