Evolution of the Cathode Spot Distribution in an Axial Magnetic Field Controlled Vacuum Arc at Long Contact Gap

The distribution of cathode spots in a CuCr25 vacuum arc controlled by an axial magnetic field and ignited on the lateral surface of the cathode is investigated for long gap distances, from the processing of high-speed video images. The processing method includes also estimating the current carried by a single spot and reconstructing the distribution of the current density at the cathode. Various distributions depending partly on the arc current are described