Descripción: A recently reported symmetry breaking of density profiles of fluid argon confined by two parallel solid walls of carbon dioxide is studied. The calculations are performed in the framework of a nonlocal density functional theory. It is shown that the existence of such asymmetrical solutions is restricted to a special choice for the adsorption potential, where the attraction of the solid-fluid interaction is reduced by the introduction of a hard-wall repulsion. The behavior as a function of the slit's width is also discussed. All the results are placed in the context of the current knowledge on this matter. © 2008 American Institute of Physics.

Descripción: A stationary, one-dimensional fluid model is presented to describe the interelectrode region of a nonfiltered vacuum arc operated with a background gas. The model includes the electron energy equation and the main elastic and inelastic atomic processes among metallic ions, electrons, and gas particles. To validate the model predictions an experimental study of the plasma-neutral gas structure, using a titanium (Ti) cathode and argon (Ar) as the background gas, is presented. The measured electron temperature and the experimental dependence on the pressure of neutral Ti and Ar spectroscopic emission lines are well reproduced, using a simple atomic model to interpret the plasma radiation emission. © 2006 American Institute of Physics.