Open AccessElectric fields of initial breakdown in positive ground flash
Author(s) -
Ushio Tomoo,
Kawasaki ZenIchiro,
Matsuura Kenji,
Wang Daohong
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.67
H-Index - 298
eISSN - 2156-2202
pISSN - 0148-0227
DOI - 10.1029/97jd01975
Subject(s) - amplitude , pulse (music) , waveform , physics , pulse amplitude modulation , overshoot (microwave communication) , electric field , rise time , lightning (connector) , optics , atomic physics , voltage , electrical engineering , power (physics) , quantum mechanics , detector , engineering
Pulse trains superimposed on the initial part of the electric field change of positive ground flashes are investigated. The characteristics of these pulse trains are found to be different from those of negative ground flashes and cloud flashes. Each pulse included in a pulse train appears as a bipolar waveform with pulse width from 5 to 52 μs and a mean of 18 μs. The time intervals between successive pulses are 10 to 180 μs with a mean of 54 μs. For each bipolar pulse, the ratio of the peak amplitude of the initial polarity to the maximum overshoot amplitude ranges from 0.4 to 4.7 with a mean value of 1.3. The ratio of maximum peak amplitude of successive pulses to the amplitude of the following return‐stroke peak ranges from 0.02 to 1.9 with a mean of 0.27.