The Nature of Static Discharge Study

What is the correct description of the growth in the number of ionized nitrogen molecules over time when studying the nature of static discharge by applying a voltage across a microscopic tube filled with nitrogen molecules?

The Growth in Number of Ionized Nitrogen Molecules

Static discharge is an event that occurs when there is a sudden flow of electric charge between two objects with different electrical potentials. This phenomenon results in a brief burst of electromagnetic energy, which can be observed as a spark or heard as a crackling sound.

A physicist studying the nature of static discharge applied a voltage across a microscopic tube filled with nitrogen molecules. The process correctly describes the growth in the number of ionized nitrogen molecules over time as exponential, where each ionized molecule ionizes 3 other molecules every nanosecond.

The equation tN2 = 3⋅N states that the number of ionized molecules at time t is equal to 3 times the number of ionized molecules at the previous time step. This implies that the number of ionized molecules increases exponentially as each ionized molecule ionizes 3 other molecules every nanosecond.

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