The work focuses on the experimental study of the emission intensity of positive and negative streamers in a multi-streamer single-pulse sliding discharge in Ne on the surface of alumina ceramic. The measurements were carried out on a setup and under conditions identical to those previously used in measuring the propagation velocity of primary and reverse streamers in each discharge pulse, by the method of photoelectric registration of the streamer emission pulse delay time in seven different locations between two plane-parallel electrodes, within the rectangular interelectrode gap of 11.6 × 9.5 cm in length × width, at step-like unipolar high-voltage pulses of 3 and 3.5 kV of positive or negative polarity with a rise time of 40 ns. The data obtained are compared to previous measurement results of the streamer velocity, their dependence on the streamer head position, and propagation time in the gap. It is found that in each discharge pulse, the emission intensity and velocity of primary streamers decrease exponentially during their propagation with almost the same decrement. When the primary streamers reach the grounded electrode, their conversion into reverse ones is accompanied by an upward jump in intensity and velocity several times. However, during the subsequent propagation of the reverse streamers to the high-voltage electrode, their emission intensity monotonously decreases, in contrast to the increase in velocity. The reasons for the opposite trend in the evolution of two reverse streamers’ characteristics have not been clearly established due to insufficient data. Mechanisms that could explain the measurement results are discussed.
K. K. Trusov (Wed,) studied this question.