Assessment of the Ionization Effect During the Distribution of a Toroidal Plasma Bunch in a Diluted Atmosphere

Abstract

Earlier, we carried out detailed numerical studies of the initial stage of the formation and movement of a toroidal plasma bunch after its flight from a plasma gun, and we also carried out preliminary calculations of its movement in highly rarefied air, when the interaction of the plasma of a bunch and air occurs in the interpenetration mode. Based on the results, the electron concentration and the scale of the ionized region that formed during the passage of a high-speed toroidal plasma bunch through the rarefied air were estimated. When the bunch spreads at a height ∼120 km and a distance ∼50 km, the ionized area with transverse dimensions of ∼20 km has an electron concentration of ∼6 × 10⁸ cm^–3