This letter considers quantitative models of microscopic processes in plasmas formed in gas phase devices for pulsed power. Although models have been developed for devices such as lasers, there are others, such as switches, where these processes have been treated only phenomenologically. Further, transport data must be adjusted to include the effects of high electron density. It is shown that it is necessary to use a microscopic model to correctly describe the device behavior. Examples presented include the effect of Coulomb collisions on conductivity in various gases, and the ionization processes in a hydrogen thyratron.