PROPAGATION CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DYNAMIC STATE IN A CAPILLARY DISCHARGE JET

A study is made of the so-called dynamic state of a metastable substan ce, characterized by the onset of a nonequilibrium energy interaction (interchange), involving various waves, in the excited material. The i ntensity of the optical emission is used to analyze the dynamic state; an investigation is made of the propagation of its leading and traili ng edges. Various propagation characteristics and natural solitary-wav e forms are identified; their similarity to ionization waves allows ma king some assumptions about the essential nature of this process. The observed effects are important for establishing the physical condition s for the formation of the substance of ball lightning and are also in teresting for the physics of flames, electrical breakdown, and electro de spots. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.