Abstract: A gas detector designed for use with a gas chromatography system, or alone, comprising a tubular inner electrode, a tubular outer electrode coaxial with the inner electrode, and a dielectric tube axially between the inner electrode and the outer electrode. The dielectric tube serves as a dielectric barrier between the inner electrode and the outer electrode. There is a longitudinal gap between the left end of the outer electrode and the right end of the inner electrode, and a sufficient voltage is applied across the gap between the electrodes to create an electrical discharge which emits light from a gas passing through the gap. The light is then detected and analyzed to determine the chemical constituents of the gas passing through the gap.

Abstract: A gas detector especially adapted for use with gas chromatographs contains two capillary tubing electrodes through which a gas flows. The inner ends of the electrodes are coaxial and are separated by a gap. The outer end of one of the electrodes forms a gas inlet. The gas detector also contains a coaxial dielectric tube spaced apart from and surrounding the electrodes axially, a means for applying a sufficient voltage across the gap between the electrodes to create a discharge within the gas, and a means for measuring a change in properties of the gas as it passes through the gap between the electrodes.