Abstract
THE response of electric probes in the region ahead of ionizing shock waves has been known for some time1. The distances over which precursor signals have been obtained are striking; they may vary from a few millimetres to more than one metre ahead of the shock2. Various explanations of electrical precursors have been proposed: (1) diffusion of electrons ahead of the shock front from the ionized region behind the front; (2) photo-emission from the probe or tube wall; (3) photoionization of the upstream gas1,3,4. Although these explanations may well apply in certain circumstances, results of the work described here suggest that at least in some cases so-called precursor effects may be due to electrostatic charging of the shock tube walls by lateral diffusion of electrons from the shock-generated plasma.
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References
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CAVENOR, M. Wall Precursor Effects in Gaseous Detonation. Nature 225, 718–719 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1038/225718b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/225718b0
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