Study on heat fluxes and their effect on electrode material removal on the copper electrode of a field-distortion gas spark switch

Gas switch is one of the key elements in pulsed-power devices, and electrode erosion is a key restrictive factor in high-power gas switch development and application. According to the thermal equilibrium equation near the electrode surface, this paper calculates electrode heat fluxes and their peak powers caused under different discharge conditions, and analyses their effects on the removal method of electrode materials. When discharge current is not too high, calculation results indicate that the arc joule heat is the main cause of electrode erosion and solid material removal may appear. Vaporization of electrode material is the main cause of electrode erosion when discharge current is high enough.