Study on electron beam emission from a low energy plasma focus device

Electron beam emission from a 2.2 kJ plasma focus device has been studied by using a charge collector. Multiple bunches of electron beams having short live are observed. The electron beam current is found to be strongly dependent on the operating pressure and the average electron beam current at 0.3 Torr of nitrogen (optimum pressure) is found to be around 13.5 kA. The highest value of electron beam charge and density are estimated at the optimum operating pressure and found to be around 7.5 mC and 4.5×1016 m−34.5×1016 m−3, respectively. The electron energy distribution spreads from approximately 10 keV to more than 200 keV with a most probable distribution within 80 to 110 keV. The results are discussed in this Letter.