Simulation of ionization-wave discharges: a direct comparison between the fluid model and E-FISH measurements

For a long period, there was a resolution gap between numerical modeling and experimental measurements, making it hard to conduct a direct comparison between them, but they are now developing in parallel. In this work, we numerically study diffusive ionization wave and fast ionization wave discharge experiments using recently published electric-field-induced second-harmonic (E-FISH) data together with a classical fluid model. We propose a pressure-E/N range for the drift diffusion approximation and a pressure-grid range for the local field/mean energy approximation of the fluid model. The three-term Helmholtz photoionization model is generalized using parameters given for N-2, O-2, CO2, and air. The capabilities of the classical fluid method for modeling the inception, propagation, and channel breakdown stages are studied. The calculated electric field evolution of the ionization is compared with E-FISH measurements in the discharge development and gap-closing stages. The influence of electrode shape and predefined electron density on the streamer morphology and the long-standing inception problem of the ionization waves are discussed in detail. Within the application range of the classical fluid model, good agreement can be achieved between calculation and measurement.