Internal phenomena and output characteristic of a thermionic converter in the ignited mode

The purpose of this study is to understand the current-voltage characteristic of a converter in the ignited mode, relating it to internal phenomena. We examined the analytical method of plasma transport phenomena in a converter presented by L. K. Hansen etc. and calculated the current-voltage characteristic by means of it. In this result, we could certify that it is valuable. It follows from this calculation that; 1) The transport mechanism of charged particles as current carriers is different between two domains in interelectrode space. 2) Ion richness ratio β doesn't affect the shape of J-V characteristic curve in the useful power region. This indicates that the choice of emitter material is easier than in the unignited mode. (author)