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[References: 11 tit.]

The paper presents experimental and numerical research results on the operation of gas diode at low pressure. A high dispersion in the runaway electron beam current (from 20 to 100 A) with respect to the average one (~50 A) is observed for a tubular cathode with a working edge radius of 30 [mu]m, nitrogen pressure of 30 Torr, and an interelectrode gap of 6 mm. Numerical simulation data show that the low beam current (~20 A) is due to the early electron emission from the cathode (at the stage of low-voltage prepulse), in which the runaway electron beam is formed from the boundary of plasma layer developing early in the breakdown. The high beam current (~100 A) is due to the delayed electron emission from the cathode, which increases the diode voltage and the runaway electron beam current. In the latter case, the runaway electron beam is formed directly at the cathode.