A mass-charge measurment of main plasma components generated by the dielectric flashover

The results of measuring the velocities and mass-charge composition of the main plasma fractions of high-voltage surface discharge of sulfur, potassium chloride and in vacuum polyethylene. Pulsed nanosecond generator with voltage to 60 kV was used. Discharge current amplitude is 3–6 kA with duration of 0.1 $\mu$s. When using a mass analyzer with a pulsed magnetic field up to 0.3 T, it was found that at a current density across the discharge channel up to 6 $\cdot$ 10$^5$ A/cm$^2$, the proportion of single-atom ions in the beam does not exceed 10–15%, and the bulk of the ion charge is carried by single ionized molecules (S2, KCl and complexes of 2–4 monomers of polyethylene). The technique is developed to characterize the composition and velocity spectrum of plasma beam components generated in models of low-thrust electric jet ablation engines with various working substances.