Capacitor dielectric question?

[trot]

How does the voltage on a capacitor vary if the dielectric is an ionised gas?

 

[DragonPetter]

This is relevant to my interests too. I want to understand this too. I can say that the ionized gas will have a force acting on it from the electric field which can cause position displacement like in an ion chamber. Because of that, you would have to consider things like recombination and neutralization at the capacitor's electrodes.

 

[NascentOxygen]

How does the voltage on a capacitor vary if the dielectric is an ionised gas?

I would say an ionized gas is not suitable as a dielectric. It's a conductor, making for a very lossy dielectric. But maybe I'm missing something here?

 

[davenn]

I would say an ionized gas is not suitable as a dielectric. It's a conductor, making for a very lossy dielectric. But maybe I'm missing something here?

agreed

as soon as the gas ionises it will pass a current. This is the principle of how gaseous arrestors work. 2 metal plates with a gas in between, when the voltage gets high enough to ionise the gas, it will provide a path for the current to flow

Dave

 

[sardar]

The voltage on a capacitor with an ionized gas as the dielectric will vary based on the level of ionization present. As the gas becomes more ionized, the dielectric constant increases, resulting in a higher capacitance and a decrease in the voltage across the capacitor. This is because the ions in the gas act as additional charges, reducing the effective distance between the capacitor plates and increasing the electric field strength. Additionally, the presence of ions can also lead to energy losses due to ion movement, which can further impact the voltage on the capacitor. Therefore, it is important to carefully consider the level of ionization in the gas when designing and using capacitors with ionized gas as the dielectric.