Anode Effect as a Function of Temperature

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Abstract
The anode effect has been investigated as a function of temperature first with a diode in which the plate could be separately heated and then with a triode in which a grid maintained at a controlled temperature could be charged by passing an electron current to it. The results indicate: (1) that with the grid at or near room temperature, its surface charge may be high enough to shift its effective contact potential by as much as two or three volts, and (2) that the magnitude of the surface charging decreases rapidly with temperature, being limited to about a tenth of a volt at 600°K, and not being detected at all above 675°K. Time studies for the drift of contact potential were made. It was found that if the contact potential shift was plotted against the logarithm of the time, the resulting graphs were nearly linear. This fact suggests that the drifts involve groups of electrons with different binding forces; so that the effective time constant of the discharge of the surface varies continuously during the history of the drift.