11 Facts About Electrical breakdown

Electrical breakdown or dielectric breakdown is a process that occurs when an electrical insulating material, subjected to a high enough voltage, suddenly becomes an electrical conductor and electric current flows through it.

However, the specific Electrical breakdown mechanisms are different for each kind of dielectric medium.

Electric field strength at which Electrical breakdown occurs is an intrinsic property of the insulating material called its dielectric strength.

Electrical breakdown can occur without an applied voltage, due to an electromagnetic wave.

Electrical breakdown is part of the normal operating mode of a number of electrical components, such as gas discharge lamps like fluorescent lights, and neon lights, zener diodes, avalanche diodes, IMPATT diodes, mercury-vapor rectifiers, thyratron, ignitron, and krytron tubes, and spark plugs.

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Electrical breakdown is often associated with the failure of solid or liquid insulating materials used inside high voltage transformers or capacitors in the electricity distribution grid, usually resulting in a short circuit or a blown fuse.

Electrical breakdown can occur across the insulators that suspend overhead power lines, within underground power cables, or lines arcing to nearby branches of trees.

Dielectric Electrical breakdown is important in the design of integrated circuits and other solid state electronic devices.

Electrical breakdown occurs within a gas when the dielectric strength of the gas is exceeded.

Across relatively small gaps, Electrical breakdown voltage in air is a function of gap length times pressure.

Electrical breakdown derived a formula that defines the breakdown voltage for uniform field gaps as a function of gap length and gap pressure .