Ectons are explosive electron emissions observed as individual packets or avalanches of electrons, occurring as microexplosions at the cathode. The electron current in an ecton starts flowing as a result of overheating of the metal cathode because of the high energy density (10<sup>4</sup>Jg<sup>âÂÂ1</sup>), and stops when the emission zone cools off.
Ectons occur in plasma-involving phenomena, such as: electrical discharges in vacuum, cathode spots of vacuum arcs, volumetric discharges in gases, pseudo-spark discharges, coronas, unipolar arcs, etc.
An ecton consists of individual portions of electrons (10<sup>11</sup>â 10<sup>12</sup> particles). The formation time is of the order of nanoseconds.