Various patterns in dielectric barrier glow discharges simulated by a dynamic model

In this paper, various patterns of dielectric barrier glow discharge simulated by a phenomenological dynamic model are reported. The model is constructed based on the basic dynamic process of dielectric barrier glow discharge and involves the voltage-transfer characteristic as well as the lateral inhibition effect. In simulations, different driving voltage profiles are applied to achieve one or two pulsed discharges in each half-period and the corresponding pattern evolution is investigated. The final stable patterns driven by a rectangular wave voltage organize simply as stationary striations or hexagonal lattices. The patterns driven by a multi-step wave appear to be much more complicated, with complementary striations, concentric rings and square superlattices observed. The evolutions of these patterns from the initial uniform state are described and it is found that the spreading of the inhibition effect plays a key role in these evolutions. The numerical simulations in the present work are in excellent accordance with previous experiments and fluid modeling. This dynamic model proves to be a convenient and promising approach to reproducing different pattern structures and pattern evolutions in dielectric barrier glow discharge systems.