Ionisation Phenomena in Active Nitrogen

IN some recent experiments with active nitrogen, it has been found that ionisation effects differ with the gases mixed with the nitrogen. When the active nitrogen alone was drawn past an ion trap into cylindrical condensers, the negative charges obtained were found to be proportional to the areas of the negative electrodes, indicating that the conductivity is due to photo-electrons emitted from the electrode and not to the production of free ions in the gas. The same observations were made when hydrogen and mercury were added to the active nitrogen before it entered the condenser. With iodine (ionisation potential 9.4 volts), however, a different ratio of currents was obtained, showing that ionisation is produced in the gas.