Projects per year
Organisation profile
Introduction / mission
We investigate the physics and applications of fast, transient discharges and the inception stages of gas discharges. The primary example of such a discharge for us is a streamer discharge, a fast-moving ionization wave through a gas. They occur in nature with lightning and sprites but also have many technological applications.
Highlighted phrase
Controlling nanosecond-scale discharges
Organisation profile
Our primary scientific topics are fast, transient discharges and the inception stages of gas discharges. Such discharges are always very far from equilibrium which makes them challenging to understand. This interest has started with one example of such discharges, namely streamer discharges, but in recent years has expanded to a larger range of extreme non-equilibrium discharges.
Still, streamer discharges our scientific focal point. Streamer discharges are the first stages of discharges like sparks and arcs. They can pierce through regions with relatively low electric field and have tree-like shapes. In nature they occur as the first stage of lightning and as so-called sprites and other discharges high above thunderclouds.
We are not limited to one application of streamers and related non-equilibrium discharges. The diversity of applications of such discharges makes this field of science interesting and ensures future-proof funding possibilities, both from fundamental scientific viewpoint as from the utilization viewpoint.
Streamer-like electric discharges form the initial stage of electric breakdown in long gaps; they are ubiquitous in nature and technology. They appear in St. Elmo's fire and recently discovered sprite discharges above lightning clouds and determine the early stages of sparks and lightning.
They are used in corona reactors for dust precipitation, ozone generation, disinfection of water and air, odour removal and various other applications. They also play a role in the (re)ignition of high pressure gas discharge lamps. The action of streamers on a gas or other substrate is three-fold:
• They carry electric current and create a path for further electric breakdown; on their course, they deposit charge in the system that, e.g., can be used for electrostatic precipitation of nanoparticles.
• They generate high energetic electrons in a thin space charge region; these electrons very efficiently catalyze gas-chemical reactions and even lead to X-ray emission.
• They cause convection in the gas through which they are moving, the so-called corona wind.
This project aims to a coordinated experimental and theoretical study of the initial phases of electrical breakdown in gases. The goal is to obtain a thorough physical understanding of the process that will enable us to optimize various technological applications. The methods include detailed theoretical and computational models developed at CWI Amsterdam, time resolved measurements of streamer width, velocity and branching under carefully determined physical conditions in a wide parameter range at the physics department of TUE. Experiments are performed at the physics department with power supplies operative in the 2 to 60 kV range.
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Profiles
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Yihao Guo
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Extreme non-equilibrium plasmas
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Elementary Processes in Gas Discharges - Doctoral Candidate
Person: Prom. : doctoral candidate (PhD), Prom. : doctoral candidate (PhD)
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Sander Nijdam
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Elementary Processes in Gas Discharges - Associate Professor
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Extreme non-equilibrium plasmas
Person: UHD : Associate Professor
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Ravi B. Patel
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Extreme non-equilibrium plasmas
- Applied Physics and Science Education, Elementary Processes in Gas Discharges - University Researcher
- Mechanical Engineering, Group Van Oijen - University Researcher
Person: Prom. : doctoral candidate (PhD), OWP : University Teacher / Researcher
Projects
- 4 Finished
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TTW 16480 Making plasma-assisted combustion efficient
Nijdam, S. (Project Manager) & Patel, R. B. (Project member)
1/09/18 → 3/05/24
Project: Second tier
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Science and Innovation with thunderstorms
Nijdam, S. (Project Manager) & Mirpour, S. (Project member)
1/03/17 → 31/08/21
Project: Research direct
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STW 15052 Let CO2 Spark!
Nijdam, S. (Project Manager) & Dijcks, S. J. (Project member)
1/12/16 → 30/04/21
Project: Research direct
Research output
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Advanced diagnostics on streamer discharges
Guo, Y., 12 Feb 2025, Eindhoven: Eindhoven University of Technology. 128 p.Research output: Thesis › Phd Thesis 1 (Research TU/e / Graduation TU/e)
Open AccessFile -
Invasiveness of pico- and nanosecond E-FISH on plasma bullets in nitrogen
Limburg, A. A. A. (Corresponding author), Keur, T. E. W., Pleijers, R. F. E. & Nijdam, S., 1 Mar 2025, In: Plasma Sources Science and Technology. 34, 3, 21 p., 035008.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open AccessFile -
Measurement of the electric field distribution in streamer discharges
Guo, Y., Limburg, A. A. A., Laarman, J. H., Teunissen, H. J. & Nijdam, S. (Corresponding author), 15 Jan 2025, In: Physical Review Research. 7, 1, 5 p., 013051.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open AccessFile1 Citation (Scopus)15 Downloads (Pure)
Datasets
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Data for "Statistical analysis on branching characteristics of positive streamer discharges in N2-O2 mixtures"
Guo, Y. (Creator) & Nijdam, S. (Creator), Zenodo, 19 Jan 2024
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10534905, https://zenodo.org/records/10534905
Dataset
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Data files related to radio emission from streamer discharges
Teunissen, J. (Contributor) & Guo, Y. (Contributor), Zenodo, 24 Jul 2024
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12922108, https://zenodo.org/records/12922108
Dataset
Prizes
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Best oral presentation
Mirpour, S. (Recipient), 2019
Prize: Other › Career, activity or publication related prizes (lifetime, best paper, poster etc.) › Scientific
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Student Prize for Best Oral Presentation
Mirpour, S. (Recipient), 2019
Prize: Other › Career, activity or publication related prizes (lifetime, best paper, poster etc.) › Scientific
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Recent understanding of streamer discharges by combining experiments and numerical modelling
Nijdam, S. (Invited speaker)
30 Sept 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk › Scientific
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Anatomy of a streamer; Detailed E-FISH and emission measurements of a single positive streamer in air
Nijdam, S. (Invited speaker)
1 Aug 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk › Scientific
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Electric field measurement of positive single-channel streamers in air by E-FISH
Guo, Y. (Speaker), Limburg, A. A. A. (Member), Laarman, J. H. (Member), Teunissen, H. J. (Member) & Nijdam, S. (Member)
11 Jul 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Contributed talk › Scientific
Press/Media
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Moet je bij onweer de stekkers uit het stopcontact trekken?
19/10/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Does lightning occur more often on Thursdays?
25/09/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
Student theses
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3D reconstruction and analysis of branching streamer discharges: elementary processes in gas discharges
van der Leegte, M. (Author), Nijdam, S. (Supervisor 1) & Dijcks, S. (Supervisor 2), Nov 2021Student thesis: Master
File -
Absolute Atomic Hydrogen Densities in Low Pressure Electron Cyclotron Resonance Plasmas measured using Optical Emission Spectroscopy
van Deudekom, S. F. (Author), Nijdam, S. (Supervisor 1), Engeln, R. A. H. (Supervisor 2) & van der Horst, R. M. (External coach), Mar 2024Student thesis: Master
File -
A numerical and experimental investigation on the physics of E-FISH when using a focused Gaussian probing beam
Pleijers, R. F. E. (Author), Nijdam, S. (Supervisor 1), Limburg, A. A. A. (Supervisor 2) & Guo, Y. (Supervisor 2), Dec 2021Student thesis: Master
File