Microdischarge activity in vacuum insulating systems with Cu-coated ceramic spacers

This paper presents the measured results of microdischarge activity in a vacuum insulating system after deposition of a Cu layer on a ceramic spacer's surface. The frequency of occurrence vs. charge magnitude characteristics of microdischarges were obtained using a multichannel pulse-height analyzer. The parameters describing microdischarge intensity which were evaluated, included total and maximum charge of microdischarges, number of pulses and average charge of pulse. Relations between microdischarge intensity and voltage as well as time for various thickness of Cu-deposited layers were determined.