Electron Attachment and Detachment in Oxygen

Abstract

New measurements have been made, by the Townsend method, of the a andn coefficients in oxygen in order to study the effect of electrondetachment ( 6 ) fromnegative oxygen ions. It is concluded that 6 is negligible cf. q for pressures higher thanabout 50 torr and for E/p (electric field strength/pressure) < 45 v cm-’ torr-’(20^oC).However, The Townseed method is capable of demonstrating and giving accurate valuesof 6, particularly at lower pressures.