Spark chamber (source code)

= Spark chamber
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A <spark chamber> reveals a <charged particle> path as a sequence of electrical sparks between conducting plates. The particle first leaves an <ionization> trail in the intervening <gas>. A promptly applied high <electric potential difference> causes discharges preferentially near that trail, making it visible.

External <scintillation counters> can detect a crossing and trigger the voltage pulse while the trail remains available. Photographing sparks in several gaps samples the trajectory; it does not make each spark a direct photograph of the particle. Timing, gas condition and electrode geometry affect efficiency. https://www.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk/~lester/teaching/SparkChamber/NIKHEF/eppog.web.cern.ch/eppog/Resources/SparkChamber.html[CERN European Particle Physics Outreach Group spark-chamber apparatus: trigger counters and pulsed plates]{ref}