Mechanism of branching in negative ionization fronts.

When a strong electric field is applied to nonconducting matter, narrow channels of plasma called streamers may form. Branchlike patterns of streamers have been observed in anode directed discharges. We explain a mechanism for branching as the result of a balance between the destabilizing effect of impact ionization and the stabilizing effect of electron diffusion on ionization fronts. The dispersion relation for transversal perturbation of a planar negative front is obtained analytically when the ratio D between the electron diffusion coefficient and the intensity of the externally imposed electric field is small. We estimate the spacing lambda between streamers and deduce a scaling law lambda approximately D(1/3).