Simulation of ionization front forming at injection of relativistic electron beam in a gas chamber

The methodical work on creation for computer program for numerical study of the processes of forming and motion of a virtual cathode at the injection of relativistic electron beam into a short cylindrical chamber, filled with gas, has been carried out. The obtained plots of the distributions of fields, potential and density appearing out of ion and electron gas of the beam itself are presented. The dependence of cross-section ionization on the electron velocity has been taken into account at the calculation. The resonance contribution into summarized cross-section of ionization was simulated. It is shown that at the injection into the chamber without gas, some oscillations of the virtual cathode are observed. At the presence of the final front of the beam, the fields level at the initial stage is smaller than for the beam with a sharp front. However, in some time the field amplitudes are compared. The motion of simulated probe ''ions'' in the chamber is analyzed