Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Garner, Allen L., Harsha, N. R. Sree
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.00877
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866912333316489216
author Garner, Allen L.
Harsha, N. R. Sree
author_facet Garner, Allen L.
Harsha, N. R. Sree
contents The space-charge limited current (SCLC) in a vacuum diode is given by the Child-Langmuir law (CLL), whose electric potential $φ(x) = (\it{x/D})^{4/3}$, where x is the spatial coordinate across the gap and D is the gap separation distance. For a collisional diode, SCLC is given by the Mott-Gurney law (MGL) and $φ(x) = (x/D)^{3/2}$. This Letter applies a capacitance argument for SCLC and uses the transit time from a recent exact solution for collisional SCLC to show that $φ(x) = (x/D)^ξ$ for a general collisional gap, where $4/3 \leqslant ξ\leqslant 3/2$. Furthermore, $ξ$ is strictly a function of $νT$, where $ν$ is the collision frequency and T is the electron transit time. Using this definition of $ξ$, we estimate the spatial dependence of the electron velocity and use the capacitance to derive an analytic equation for collisional SCLC that agrees within $\sim5-6\%$ of the exact solution that requires solving parametrically through T. We derive equations in the limits of $ν\longrightarrow 0$ and $ν\longrightarrow \infty$ for general $ξ$ that asymptotically recover the CLL as $ν\longrightarrow 0$ and the MGL as $ν\longrightarrow \infty$. Matching these limits shows that $ξ\simeq 1.40$ and $V \propto D^2ν^2$ at the transition from a vacuum to collisional diode for any device condition.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_00877
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The implications of collisions on the spatial profile of electric potential and the space-charge limited current
Garner, Allen L.
Harsha, N. R. Sree
Plasma Physics
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Classical Physics
The space-charge limited current (SCLC) in a vacuum diode is given by the Child-Langmuir law (CLL), whose electric potential $φ(x) = (\it{x/D})^{4/3}$, where x is the spatial coordinate across the gap and D is the gap separation distance. For a collisional diode, SCLC is given by the Mott-Gurney law (MGL) and $φ(x) = (x/D)^{3/2}$. This Letter applies a capacitance argument for SCLC and uses the transit time from a recent exact solution for collisional SCLC to show that $φ(x) = (x/D)^ξ$ for a general collisional gap, where $4/3 \leqslant ξ\leqslant 3/2$. Furthermore, $ξ$ is strictly a function of $νT$, where $ν$ is the collision frequency and T is the electron transit time. Using this definition of $ξ$, we estimate the spatial dependence of the electron velocity and use the capacitance to derive an analytic equation for collisional SCLC that agrees within $\sim5-6\%$ of the exact solution that requires solving parametrically through T. We derive equations in the limits of $ν\longrightarrow 0$ and $ν\longrightarrow \infty$ for general $ξ$ that asymptotically recover the CLL as $ν\longrightarrow 0$ and the MGL as $ν\longrightarrow \infty$. Matching these limits shows that $ξ\simeq 1.40$ and $V \propto D^2ν^2$ at the transition from a vacuum to collisional diode for any device condition.
title The implications of collisions on the spatial profile of electric potential and the space-charge limited current
topic Plasma Physics
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Classical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.00877