Spectroscopic study of high-temperature plasma

In this paper a description is given of the application of some spectroscopic methods to studies of heated plasma obtained in pulse discharges. The main attention in such experiments has always been directed to two characteristic moments in the life of the discharge, namely, the moments of first and second contraction of the plasma column. These are the moments when the discharge plasma reaches the extreme conditions - it is just then that hard X radiation emerges in light-gas discharges, while in deuterium plasma neutrons appear in addition. These unexpected effects discovered in pulse discharges are usually observed at the instant of the second contraction. The plasma state at the first contraction is no less interesting, and a considerable part of the paper is devoted to a detailed description of this phase of the discharge