Abstract
The problem of assessing apparent secondary emission coefficient \({{\gamma }_{{{\text{eff}}}}}\) based on electrical properties of DC glow discharge is considered for the case of low-pressure discharges in nitrogen. Estimation method was based on a previously developed analytical model of a DC glow discharge which has been shown to provide informative data on \({{\gamma }_{{{\text{eff}}}}}\) for discharges with copper electrodes in argon. Preliminary estimates based from current−voltage characteristics of discharges in nitrogen with copper electrodes were obtained and analyzed. While the averaged value of \({{\gamma }_{{{\text{eff}}}}}\) agreed well with the one corresponding to conditions of a clean copper cathode, the dependence of \({{\gamma }_{{{\text{eff}}}}}\) on reduced electric field for each considered CVC exhibited a pronounced decrease. Reasons for such dependence are attributed to uncertainties in the analytical formulation of non-local ionization source for nitrogen used during calculations.
