I'm trying to design some sort of arc suppression for a relay under short circuit when tripped. So i'm trying to understand how these arcs form. From my understanding, at the instant of tripping, the relay contacts instantly changes its voltage to the supply voltage. Since the switch takes some time to fully open, E = V/d, and we have a very small distance (at instant of tripping) with a very large voltage (230 V AC rms in my case). The electric field is so high that it causes breakdown of the air and a conduction arc forms.
Correct ?
So my main goal is to reduce the dv/dt across the switch which will reduce the electric field and prevent breakdown ?
How can I prevent or suppress the arc from forming ?, will a snubber across the contacts work ?