Structured discharges in high frequency plasmas

Modeling nonthermal plasmas generated in glow discharges*

Over the past decade, tremendous progress has been made in the modeling of nonthermal plasmas, and models have now reached the point that they are being used to help guide the experimental optimization of plasma based devices. In this communication we provide an overview of models used to describe nonthermal plasma generated in glow discharges. We show results from two applications, plasma disp...

Grounded radio-frequency electrodes in contact with high density plasmas

An analytical model is developed of an asymmetric electrode system immersed in a plasma, consisting of two dc-grounded electrodes, where the smaller one is biased at 13.56 MHz. The model is compared with a set of experiments performed in a high density low pressure plasma source an electron cyclotron resonance source where a second electrode is immersed into the plasma and powered by radio freq...

Physics of high-pressure helium and argon radio-frequency plasmas

The physics of helium and argon rf discharges have been investigated in the pressure range from 50 to 760 Torr. The plasma source consists of metal electrodes that are perforated to allow the gas to flow through them. Current and voltage plots were obtained at different purity levels and it was found that trace impurities do not affect the shape of the curves. The electron temperature was calcu...

Surface corona-bar discharges for production of pre-ionizing UV light for pulsed high-pressure plasmas

Multi-atmospheric pressure, pulsed electric discharge excited lasers require pre-ionization to produce spatially uniform glows. Many such systems use corona bars to produce ultraviolet (UV) and vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light as photo-ionization sources for this purpose. Corona bars are transient surface discharges, typically in a cylindrical geometry, that sustain high electron temperatures and...

Breakdown behavior in radio-frequency argon discharges