Search

Laser diode absorption spectroscopy is used to experimentally measure Ar(1s5) metastable density and translational gas temperature within a 94 GHz microplasma. A square two-dimensional photonic crystal (PhC) at this resonance frequency serves to ignite and sustain the plasma from 20 to 200 Torr (2.7 × 103–2.7 × 104 Pa) by using millimeter wave power from 300 to 1000 mW. Metastable density within the plasma is estimated from the absorption line shape of the laser traversing the PhC. The metastable density reaches an order of 1019 m−3 at lower pressure and decreases as pressure increases. From the Lorentzian line shape of the absorption profile at 811.53 nm, the gas temperature is extracted and found to increase from 500 K at 20 Torr to 1300 K at 200 Torr. These data are analyzed and compared with a zero-dimensional plasma model and with previous experimental plasma results at 43 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diode-pumped rare gas lasers (DPRGLs) have the potential for high-energy laser output with high beam quality. The metastable concentration >1014 cm−3 and pump intensity >10 kW/cm2 are required in developing high-power and efficient DPRGLs. However, the kinetics of 1s and 2p levels (Paschen notation) under these conditions is unclear yet, particularly regarding the adverse effects of interference energy levels (e.g., 1s4 and 2p1–2p8). This study addresses this gap by measuring the number densities of 1s and 2p levels in a diode-pumped plasma jet metastable argon laser. The experiment was conducted with a much higher number density of 1014 cm−3 and a higher pump intensity of 12 kW/cm2 than our previous works. The results indicate that the adverse effect of 1s4 accumulation could be partially compensated, and the relative population distribution of 2p energy levels remained unchanged. However, the high gas temperature (>1000 K) caused a significant negative impact of high 2p levels (2p1–2p8), and the air environment weakened the effect of He collision relaxation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of microwave device reliability and performance for microscale devices motivates a more fundamental understanding of breakdown mechanisms in this regime. Microwave breakdown theories predict breakdown when electron production balances electron loss. Electron production depends strongly on the ionization rate ν i ; however, previous studies either used the measured ν i in macroscale gaps or the empirical formula for DC voltage, inaccurately predicting ν i in microscale gaps. Alternatively, this work characterizes ν i in microwave microplasmas by using particle-in-cell simulations. We calculated ν i in argon gas at atmospheric pressure for 2–10 μm gaps under AC fields ranging from 1 to 1000 GHz. The behavior of ν i may be separated into two regimes by defining a critical frequency f c r that depends on the amplitude of the applied voltage, gap distance, and pressure. For frequency f < f c r , the electrodes collect the electrons during each cycle and the electron number oscillates with the electric field, causing ν i / f to roughly scale with the reduced effective field E e f f / p. For f > --> f c r , the phase-space plots indicate that the electrons are confined inside the gap, causing the electron number to grow exponentially and v i / p to become a function of E e f f / p. These results elucidate the ionization mechanism for AC fields at microscale gap distances and may be incorporated into field emission-driven microwave breakdown theories to improve their predictive capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-temperature annealing (HTA) is one of the most promising techniques to produce high-quality, cost-efficient AlN templates for further epitaxial growth of AlGaN devices. Unfortunately, the yield of this process seems to be limited due to the restricting face-to-face configuration that is typically used, in which contaminations of the template surface can occur easily. A high yield is crucial for process transfer into industry. Indeed, templates that are annealed in open-face configuration suffer from surface degradation due to excessive AlN evaporation during the course of the annealing process. To highlight the physics that are restricting the open-face approach of the process, sublimation behavior of AlN at temperatures and atmospheres typically used in HTA processes has to be examined. In this study, we use the Knudsen effusion mass spectrometry technique to confirm the previously published results on equilibrium partial pressures of species above AlN. Based on the experimentally determined data and further AlN sublimation experiments, the apparent sublimation coefficient of AlN in N2 and Ar atmospheres at HTA process conditions can be derived. Despite N2 having a stabilizing effect on AlN during HTA, the still high decomposition rates of several hundred nanometers per hour can explain the excessive damage that is typically observed if AlN/sapphire templates are annealed in an open-face configuration. Finally, based on theoretical considerations, a strategy to reduce the sublimation of AlN during HTA in open-face configuration is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Short pulses of millimeter wave (MMW) radiation at 43 GHz create microplasma within a photonic crystal for pressures from 40 to 600 Torr (1.3 × 103–8.0 × 104 Pa). Gas breakdown occurs within a photonic crystal, which acts as an electromagnetic resonator to create a strong initial electric field. The time response of the argon metastable density is experimentally determined during the pulse and in the afterglow using laser absorption. The metastable density overshoots the steady-state condition at the beginning of the pulse and during the afterglow. Modeling is presented to understand these observations. The overproduction of argon 1s5 at the beginning of each pulse is due to a concurrent overshoot in the MMW electric field within the photonic crystal. This field overheats the plasma electrons and enhances the production of excited states. The burst of argon metastables observed in the afterglow is due to the pooled energy of the plasma stored in electrons, ions, and excited states of argon. Understanding metastable production is an important intermediate step to ionization and is also critical in the study of diode-pumped rare gas lasers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diode-pumped metastable rare gas lasers are showing their potential for high-energy laser systems with intensive investigations carried out to understand their lasing characteristics. Here, we demonstrated pulsed lasing of a diode-pumped argon metastable laser based on a pulsed DC glow discharge in argon and helium mixtures for different discharge voltages and pressures. A transient rate equation model was established and solved to explain the cause of the pulsed lasing in our experiment. The insufficient production rate of argon metastable atoms (1s5) and the slow transfer rate out of the 1s4 state in the plasma during the lasing process were found to be the key reasons. This work may shed some light on the future design of plasma sources that have higher metastable atom production rates to achieve highly efficient continuous wave lasing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Argon (1s5) metastable density and translational gas temperature are experimentally measured using laser diode absorption spectroscopy within a 43 GHz microplasma. The plasma is initiated and sustained within a photonic crystal constructed from a rectangular array of alumina rods, each 1 mm in diameter. This configuration generates stable microplasma from 10 to 600 Torr using millimeter wave power from 100 to 1200 mW. The metastable density is in the order of 1018 m−3 at low pressure. However, Ar(1s5) density decreases to undetectable levels with increasing pressure and wave power. The gas temperature is extracted from the Lorentzian line shape of the absorption profile at 811.53 nm. The gas temperature increases from approximately 400 K at low pressure to 2000 K at 320 Torr (427 mbar, 4.27 × 104 Pa). These data are compared with previous results and suggest that the microplasma has a dense core of electrons that depletes the metastable density at high gas pressure and wave power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports the excitation of a helical argon atmospheric pressure plasma jet using a pulse-modulated 13.56 MHz radio frequency (RF) power source. This helical structure is observed in open ambient air, which is far different from the conventional conical shape. This helical structure originates due to the periodic pressure variation in the discharge region caused by pulse-modulated RF (2 kHz modulation frequency) and propagates downstream into the ambient air. The geometrical characteristics of the observed structure are explored using optical imaging. Moreover, the influence of various input parameters, viz., duty cycle, gas flow rate, and RF power, of the modulated pulse on the formation of a helical structure are studied. These helical structures have an implication on the plasma jet chemical features (enhancement of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species) as these are involved in an increase in air entrainment into the ionization region desired for various plasma applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work reports average electron temperature (T e) and electron density (n e) of an atmospheric argon rotating gliding arc (R G A), operated in glow-type mode, under transitional and turbulent flows. Both T e and n e were calculated near the shortest (δ) and longest (Δ) gap between the electrodes, by two different methods using two separate measurements: (1) optical emission spectroscopy (O E S) and (2) physical–electrical. T e calculated from (a) collisional radiative model (C R M) (O E S) and (b) BOLSIG+ [physical–electrical, reduced electric field (E N o ) as input], differed each other by 16%–26% at δ and 6% at Δ. T e was maximum at δ (> --> 2 eV) and minimum near Δ (1.6–1.7 eV). Similarly, the E N o was maximum near the δ (5–8 Td) and minimum near Δ , reaching an asymptotic value (1 Td). By benchmarking T e from C R M , the expected E N o near δ was corrected to 3 Td. The calculated C R M intensity agreed well with that of the measured for most of the emission lines indicating a well optimized model. The average n e near δ and Δ from Stark broadening (O E S) was 4.8– 8.0 × 10 21 m − 3 , which is an order higher than the n e calculated through current density (physical–electrical). T e and n e were not affected by gas flow, attributed to the glow-type mode operation. To the best of authors' knowledge, this work reports for the first time (a) an optimized C R M for R G A s (fine-structure resolved), (b) the poly-diagnostic approach to estimate plasma parameters, and (c) the validation of E N o calculated using physical–electrical measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the effect of mixing of argon and oxygen gas on the mode transition and negative ion production in the helicon discharge is investigated. In the source chamber of the experimental setup, argon–oxygen gas mixture plasma is produced by applying RF power from 100 W to 2000 W at an applied magnetic field of 0.03 T. In this experiment, the total flow rate is kept at 200 SCCM, corresponding to the working pressure of 4–5 × 10−1 Pa. The mode transition to helicon discharge is investigated by varying the concentration of these two gases. To the best of our knowledge, the literature survey indicates this to be the first study of the influence of the mixing of oxygen–argon gas on the mode transition from the inductive to the helicon mode. It is observed that an increase in the concentration of oxygen gas in the discharge shifts mode transition toward higher RF power values, indicating the influence of the nature of the working gas on the transition to the inductive as well as to the helicon mode. The variation of the electron density and temperature is explained in terms of particle and power balance equation. In the source and in the downstream expansion chamber, the effect of the concentration of argon gas on the negative ion production in oxygen discharge is also studied, and the results are explained in terms of various reactions involved in the production and loss of negative ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-power (from the sub-kilowatt range up to a few kilowatts) inductively coupled plasma (ICP) electrothermal thrusters for space propulsion are potential alternatives to low-power arcjet thrusters, which are often implemented on geostationary satellites for north–south station keeping. We develop an axisymmetric two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) numerical simulation technique using a two-temperature plasma model as a computer-aided engineering tool for low-power argon ICP electrothermal thrusters. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to provide a basic understanding of the plasma-fluid characteristics of low-power ICP electrothermal thrusters. To this end, we perform the MHD numerical simulation for a low-power argon ICP electrothermal thruster model that was developed for thrust measurement experiments to validate the proposed numerical simulation technique. The numerical results indicate that the plasma flow produced in the low-power argon ICP electrothermal thruster model is basically in a strongly thermal and ionizing nonequililbrium state. In addition, the numerical results show that the experimentally measured thrust forces can be reproduced with an underestimation of 10% or less over the RF input power range of 0–0.6 kW considered in the experiment. Moreover, the numerical results suggest that the main reason why the performance of the low-power argon ICP electrothermal thruster model is significantly lower than the target performance is the considerable heat loss of more than 90% of the input power through the flow-channel wall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strong dependence of electrical explosion of wires (EEW) on wire dimensions is demonstrated experimentally from three perspectives: electrical characteristics, spatial structures, and nanopowder properties. Electrical characteristics of EEW were explored by measuring current and voltage waveforms of exploding 20-100 µm-diameter and 2-10 cm-long wires in argon gas. The discharge mode, energy deposition, and breakdown characteristics of EEW were analyzed based on the calculation of several electrical parameters. Laser-based diagnostics and multi-frame photographs were used to obtain the EEW spatial structures and their evolutionary characteristics. The radial distribution of exploding wires in the early and diffusion stages was obtained according to the analysis of shadowgraphs and interference images. The optical observations suggested that nonuniformity of EEW spatial structures becomes appreciable with the increase of wire dimensions. Inhomogeneities in exploding wires (e.g., residual cores, gaps, local hot spots, and stratification phenomena) and the causes of their formation were also discussed. The morphology and particle size distribution of nanopowders produced by EEW were also observed via transmission electron microscopy as well. The statistical results show that increasing wire dimensions (diameter and length) increase the average diameter and broaden the size distribution of nanopowders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasma formation between coupled dielectric resonators (DRs) is frequency scaled from 1 GHz to 7 GHz. Previous research found that applying low-power microwaves to a pair of calcium titanate (CaTiO3) resonators could ignite plasma between them using the HEM111 resonance mode. Those large, 1 GHz DRs are scaled down in size, and thus scaled up in frequency. The optimum relative permittivity of DRs for plasma formation is reported to be 200, confirming that CaTiO3 (ɛr ∼ 170 ± 5) is a good material to use for plasma-forming DRs. This paper presents data collected for a 2D array of resonators operating in the 6–7 GHz range for separation distances of 0.25 mm and 0.5 mm in a 1–10 Torr argon gas environment. Gas breakdown data for two DR configurations are compared to the Raizer theory at 1.1 GHz and 6.5 GHz. Plasma modulation of the reflection and transmission of DR arrays with plasma on and off indicates possible future applications as a frequency selective filter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes a study of the electron energy distribution function in the self-sustained direct current (dc) Townsend discharge. A three-electrode microdischarge structure with a plane-parallel arrangement of electrodes is applied in the experiments. The device comprises two discharge gaps of a small width having a common electrode in the form of a fine-grained metal mesh. A high-resistivity cathode to the first gap is applied, which ensures the spatial uniformity of the Townsend discharge in the gap. The second gap serves as a retarding field analyzer of energy of electrons that are generated in the region of the Townsend discharge and pass through cells in the grid electrode. Experiments are carried out for discharges in argon and nitrogen near the minimum of the Paschen curve. According to the data obtained, shapes of the distribution function for the investigated gases are different: for Ar, a local maximum at energies of 1–3 eV is observed in the distributions, in contrast to N 2. At the same time, the effective electron temperature—determined from the high-energy tail of a distribution—is close for both gases and lies in the range of 0.8–1.9 eV. This is significantly lower than electron energies that give numerical calculations for E / N values corresponding to the conditions of experiments. Among the possible reasons for the difference is the fundamental property of a dc Townsend discharge: electrons in the subanode layer—where they are accumulated and from where they pass to the analyzer—gain energy mainly on a relatively small ionization length in the gas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optically pumped rare gas laser systems require a lasing medium of high density metastable atoms. A scalable two-dimensional array of quarter-wave resonators produces high microwave electric fields suitable for generating a dense gas of argon 1 s 5 states. This resonator array is immersed within an evacuated waveguide in order to create a volume of plasma in a relatively wide discharge gap (13 mm) at argon-helium pressures up to 100 Torr using 30 W of continuous microwave power at 2.3 GHz. Spatial density profiles of argon 1 s 5 states are measured using diode laser absorption spectroscopy with 0.5 mm resolution. The region of argon 1 s 5 states is mapped in the discharge and shown to have an estimated density in excess of 1 × 10 18 m − 3 within a volume of 11.6 × 3.2 × 0.8 m m 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atmospheric microplasma jets (MPJs) sustained in rare gases have gained increased attention due to their potential to generate highly reactive species. In this paper, we present space- and time-resolved argon metastable densities, Ar(1s5), measured in an atmospheric pressure MPJ operated in Ar and propagating into ambient air using tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (1s5 → 2p9 optical transition). The MPJ was produced using a dielectric barrier discharge energized by short duration (230 ns) high-voltage positive pulses (4.2–6.2 kV) at a repetition frequency of 20 kHz. The spectral absorption line profile was recorded and allowed measurements of the absolute metastable Ar(1s5) density integrated in the line-of-sight of the laser beam under various operating conditions of the MPJ. The results reveal a sensitive dependence of the Ar(1s5) density on spatial coordinates, i.e., distance from the exit of the capillary tube of the discharge and from the axis of the argon jet. The highest Ar(1s5) densities of about 3 × 1013 cm−3 were measured at the axis of the argon jet at longitudinal distances between 4 and 5.5 mm downstream from the nozzle of the tube. The temporal distribution of the Ar(1s5) density, which presents three maxima, is thoroughly discussed in this paper. The spatial distribution of the effective Ar(1s5) lifetime (<250 ns) is also reported, giving some insight into the surrounding environment of the argon metastable atoms. The determined spatiotemporal distributions of the Ar(1s5) density can be useful for the optimization of argon MPJs for different applications like surface or biomedical processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of a numerical investigation of the dynamics of a sliding discharge in a capillary with spatial dimensions similar to those typically used in X-ray sources based on fast capillary discharges. The discharge is created in argon at pressure p = 9 Torr by applying a voltage pulse of negative polarity with an amplitude of 5 kV, a rise time of 5 ns, and a duration of 20 ns. Obtained distributions of main discharge parameters reproduce basic characteristics of a sliding discharge and reveal the mechanism of discharge propagation. The electric field in the front of the discharge is defined by a negative space charge, which at a given moment during discharge propagation is localized in a narrow region along the dielectric surface. For the considered case, discharge propagation is accompanied by full charging of the dielectric surface. The influence of gas pressure on discharge is investigated within range p = 2–25 Torr. Extrema in dependencies of total discharge time and front velocity on gas pressure are obtained in simulations and analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments demonstrate a strong dependence of the energy deposition and morphology of exploding Al wires in argon gas on ambient pressures, charging voltage, and wire sizes. The specific energy deposition, before voltage collapse, increases with increasing ambient pressures and applied voltage but decreases with increasing wire sizes. The observation of the spatiotemporal distribution of exploding wires indicates that increased energy deposition suppresses the axial inhomogeneity, especially for large-sized wires, and improves the expansion velocity of the metal core. The expansion velocity of the wire core (100 μm in diameter, 2 cm in length) varies from ∼0.49 km/s to ∼2.3 km/s when the specific energy deposition increases from 1.95 eV/atom to 3.01 eV/atom. Decreased surrounding pressures also improve the expansion velocity. Furthermore, the analysis of photographs and emission spectrums demonstrates that the surrounding gases promote the formation of coronal plasmas when the pressure is no more than 50 kPa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generation of singly charged Ar + and Ti + , doubly charged Ar 2 + and Ti 2 + , and of Ar 2 + and Ti 2 + dimer ions in a high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) discharge with a Ti cathode was investigated. Energy-resolved mass spectrometry was employed. The argon gas pressures varied between 0.5 and 2.0 Pa. Energy spectra of monomer ions are composed of low- and high-energy components. The energetic position of the high-energy component is approximately twice as large for doubly charged ions compared to singly charged ions. Intensities of Ar 2 + and Ti 2 + dimer ions are considerably smaller during HiPIMS compared to dc magnetron sputtering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the mechanism of negative streamer formation and branching between planar electrodes is studied using a two dimensional particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisional model. Super-particles, each one of which represents many physical particles, are used in our model to reduce the calculation and memory usage. The electric field applied to the gap between electrodes is constant and is above the breakdown value already before the streamer formation. For nitrogen at standard temperature and pressure, the simulation is first performed in the background field of 10 MV/m. The results show that prior to branching, the streamer head is flattened, and the non-uniform distribution of electrons accelerated to energies above 50 eV is obtained at the flat streamer head, which then leads to streamer branching. Then, additional simulations in the background fields of 9 MV/m, 11 MV/m, and 12 MV/m are performed to investigate the effects of background field. The results show that the streamer propagates faster, has larger plasma density, and branches more rapidly in a stronger field. The simulation results of argon are also given at a standard temperature and pressure in the background field of 10 MV/m. The results show that more branches can be obtained in argon compared with nitrogen, which agrees well with the experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A gas aggregation source based on DC magnetron sputtering was investigated using a passive thermal probe and supplementary diagnostics (Langmuir probe and quartz crystal microbalance). Parameter variations of pressure, axial distance, and magnetron current have been performed for three different targets (pure Cu, pure W, composite Cu/W) in argon discharge. The measurements showed the energy flux to be significantly higher for the case of the pure tungsten and the composite target compared to the copper target, which is likely a result of the strongly increased amount of neutrals being reflected from the heavier targets. Furthermore, gas rarefaction by the sputtered atoms was found to be essential for the understanding of the observed energy flux and that the dominant contributors to the energy flux in the higher pressure regime are comparable to those observed in the conventional lower pressure regime. Selected deposited films have been investigated ex-situ by scanning electron microscopy, which allowed us to gain insight into the nanoparticle formation in relation to the observed energy conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report here a detailed study of the four-wave mixing process in the extreme ultraviolet region around 30 nm by using two collinear incommensurate frequency laser pulses. The experimental results reveal evidence of the coherent accumulation of the wave-mixing fields and low-order (third-order and fifth-order) nonlinear response of an argon medium. The dependence of the intensities of the mixing fields on the intensity of a weak control field, on the argon pressure, and on the interaction length is analyzed to show that the four-wave mixing fields in this spectral range are generated under the phase-matched condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the electron mobility and sheet density of the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in both air and argon environments at 600 °C were measured intermittently over a 5 h duration using unpassivated and Al2O3-passivated AlGaN/GaN (with 3 nm GaN cap) van der Pauw test structures. The unpassivated AlGaN/GaN heterostructures annealed in air showed the smallest decrease (~8%) in 2DEG electron mobility while Al2O3-passivated samples annealed in argon displayed the largest drop (~70%) based on the Hall measurements. Photoluminescence and atomic force microscopy showed that minimal strain relaxation and surface roughness changes have occurred in the unpassivated samples annealed in air, while those with Al2O3 passivation annealed in argon showed significant microstructural degradations. This suggests that cracks developed in the samples annealed in air were healed by oxidation reactions. To further confirm this, Auger electron spectroscopy was conducted on the unpassivated samples after the anneal in air and results showed that extra surface oxides have been generated, which could act as a dislocation pinning layer to suppress the strain relaxation in AlGaN. On the other hand, similar 2DEG sheet densities were observed in passivated and unpassivated AlGaN/GaN samples at the end of the 5-h anneal in air or argon due to the combined impact of strain relaxation and changes in the ionized electronic states. The results support the use of unpassivated GaN-capped AlGaN/GaN heterostructures as the material platform for high-temperature electronics and sensors used in oxidizing environmental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of a Multipole Resonance Probe (MRP) are compared to a Langmuir probe in measuring the electron density in Ar, H2, N2, and O2 mixtures. The MRP was designed for measurements in industry processes, i.e., coating or etching. To evaluate a possible influence on the MRP measurement due to molecular gases, different plasmas with increasing molecular gas content in a double inductively coupled plasma at 5 Pa and 10 Pa at 500W are used. The determined electron densities from the MRP and the Langmuir probe slightly differ in H2 and N2 diluted argon plasmas, but diverge significantly with oxygen. In pure molecular gas plasmas, electron densities measured with the MRP are always higher than those measured with the Langmuir Probe, in particular, in oxygen containing mixtures. The differences can be attributed to etching of the tungsten wire in the Ar:O2 mixtures and rf distortion in the pure molecular discharges. The influence of a non-Maxwellian electron energy distribution function, negative ions or secondary electron emission seems to be of no or only minor importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A diffuse plasma jet was realized by expanding the preexisting argon filamentary discharge into a diffuse one at atmospheric pressure. Examination of emission spectra from the plasma jet shows that the emission intensities of OH and Ar increase with the argon flow near the quartz tube nozzle, while the N2 emission intensity first increases, then decreases, and finally approximately remains unchanged with the increase in the argon flow of interest. It is also found that with the argon flow set at 0.4 l/min, most of the reactive species are gathered close to the nozzle, the OH and Ar emission intensities decrease quickly after the plasma propagates out of the nozzle, but the N2 emission is able to propagate over a larger distance. These distinct spectral emission features of OH, N2, and Ar are attributed to the different generation and quenching mechanisms of their corresponding excited states, i.e., OH (A²Σ+) N2 (C³ ∏µ), and Ar(4s) in the argon plasma jet. Additionally, the formation of the diffuse plasma jet has been clarified by observing the discharge burning phase and solving the Poisson equation for the electric field distribution in an argon cylindrical dielectric-barrier discharge. The filamentary discharge deposits charged particles onto the dielectric. The positive surface charges in the positive half cycle induce a relatively high field in the local region close to the dielectric. The relatively high field and the high pre-ionization in this local region play a key role in initiating the diffuse positive corona. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-chamber inductively coupled plasma (ICP) system, in which an expansion region with large volume is attached to a main ICP (driver region with a small vessel), is investigated. In order to give a comprehensive knowledge of this kind of plasma source, the axially and radially resolved measurements of the electron density, effective electron temperature, and electron energy probability function (EEPF) for an argon discharge are systematically conducted by means of Langmuir probe for various powers and gas pressures. Moreover, a hybrid model within COMSOL Multiphysics is employed to validate the experimental results. It is found that the diffusion combined with the nonlocal electron kinetics plays a predominant role in two-chamber ICPs. Along the axial direction, both the electron density and the electron temperature peak at the center of the driver region and they decline towards both sides. The depletion of high-energy tails of EEPFs with axial distance demonstrates the cooling mechanism for energetic electrons in the expansion region. Along the radial direction, the spatial distribution of the electron density exhibits a bell shape for various powers and pressures. However, the radial distribution of the effective electron temperature varies gradually from a convex shape to a concave shape with increasing gas pressure, indicating the transition from nonlocal to local electron kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simulations of a pulsed direct current discharge are performed for a 7% argon in helium mixture at a pressure of 270 Torr using both zero- and one-dimensional models. Kinetics of species relevant to the operation of an optically pumped rare-gas laser are analyzed throughout the pulse duration to identify key reaction pathways. Time dependent densities, electron temperatures, current densities, and reduced electric fields in the positive column are analyzed over a single 20 µs pulse, showing temporal agreement between the two models. Through the use of a robust reaction rate package, radiation trapping is determined to play a key role in reducing Ar(1s5) metastable loss rates through the reaction sequence Ar(1s5)+e-→Ar(1s4)+e- followed by Ar(1s4)→Ar+ℏω. Collisions with He are observed to be responsible for Ar(2p9) mixing, with nearly equal rates to Ar(2p10) and Ar(2p8). Additionally, dissociative recombination of Ar2+ is determined to be the dominant electron loss mechanism for the simulated discharge conditions and cavity size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spokes, localised ionisation zones, are commonly observed in magnetron sputtering plasmas, appearing either with a triangular shape or with a diffuse shape, exhibiting self-organisation patterns. In this paper, we investigate the spoke properties (shape and emission) in a high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) discharge when reactive gas (N2 or O2) is added to the Ar gas, for three target materials; Al, Cr, and Ti. Peak discharge current and total pressure were kept constant, and the discharge voltage and mass flow ratios of Ar and the reactive gas were adjusted. The variation of the discharge voltage is used as an indication of a change of the secondary electron yield. The optical emission spectroscopy data demonstrate that by addition of reactive gas, the HiPIMS plasma exhibits a transition from a metal dominated plasma to the plasma dominated by Ar ions and, at high reactive gas partial pressures, to the plasma dominated by reactive gas ions. For all investigated materials, the spoke shape changed to the diffuse spoke shape in the poisoned mode. The change from the metal to the reactive gas dominated plasma and increase in the secondary electron production observed as the decrease of the discharge voltage corroborate our model of the spoke, where the diffuse spoke appears when the plasma is dominated by species capable of generating secondary electrons from the target. Behaviour of the discharge voltage and maximum plasma emission is strongly dependant on the target/reactive gas combination and does not fully match the behaviour observed in DC magnetron sputtering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reactive high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) process using a titanium target in a mixture of Ar/O2 has been investigated for different modes of operation including pure argon, metallic, transition, and compound mode. The trends and changes in the plasma density ne and the effective electron temperature Teff, have been measured by the time-resolved Langmuir probe technique. The same experimental process conditions have also been studied using a recently developed reactive ionization region model (R-IRM), making it possible to compare the acquired experimental results with the model results. It was found that trends in the plasma density and mean electron energy as measured by the Langmuir probe are in good agreement with the results obtained from the R-IRM model for different pulse discharge current densities. The effective electron temperature generally increases with an increasing oxygen flow rate. It is likely due to a reduction of sputtered Ti, due to compound formation on the target, which forces the discharge to increase the electron energy to increase the ionization rate of the process gas (Ar/O2) to maintain a high HiPIMS discharge current. Small variations in the plasma density were detected between the middle part of the plasma pulse as compared to the end of the plasma pulse, when transitioning from the metal mode to the poisoned mode. It is found that the time-evolution of the electron density is rather well correlated with the discharge current waveform. On the other hand, the mean electron energy did not change significantly between the middle and the end of the plasma pulse. For the lower pulse discharge current, both the model and experimental data have shown a slight increase in the plasma density with increasing O2 mass flow rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reactive high-power impulse magnetron sputtering discharge has been studied experimentally combining optical emission, absorption, and laser-based diagnostic techniques. The quantification of the atomic ground state densities is performed using optical emission spectroscopy. Hysteresis behavior as a function of molecular oxygen flow fraction in Ar-O2 mixture has been observed for numerous discharge parameters, such as the ground state density of O atoms, density of the sputtered atoms and ions, Ar metastables, etc. The obtained atomic number densities are found to be in full agreement with the known models of reactive sputter deposition. The relevant plasma kinetic mechanisms influencing the measured trends are analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oxygen dynamics in a reactive Ar/O2 high power impulse magnetron sputtering discharge has been studied using a new reactive ionization region model. The aim has been to identify the dominating physical and chemical reactions in the plasma and on the surfaces of the reactor affecting the oxygen plasma chemistry. We explore the temporal evolution of the density of the ground state oxygen molecule O2(Xµ ∑-g, the singlet metastable oxygen molecules O2 (aµΔg) and O2(bµ ∑-g, the oxygen atom in the ground state O(³P), the metastable oxygen atom O(¹D), the positive ions O+2 and O+, and the negative ion O-. We furthermore investigate the reaction rates for the gain and loss of these species. The density of atomic oxygen increases significantly as we move from the metal mode to the transition mode, and finally into the compound (poisoned) mode. The main gain rate responsible for the increase is sputtering of atomic oxygen from the oxidized target. Both in the poisoned mode and in the transition mode, sputtering makes up more than 80% of the total gain rate for atomic oxygen. We also investigate the possibility of depositing stoichiometric TiO2 in the transition mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between pulsed plasmas and surfaces undergoing chemical changes complicates physics of reactive High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS). In this study, we determine the dynamics of formation and removal of a compound on a titanium surface from the evolution of discharge characteristics in an argon atmosphere with nitrogen and oxygen. We show that the time response of a reactive process is dominated by surface processes. The thickness of the compound layer is several nm and its removal by sputtering requires ion fluence in the order of 1016 cm-2, much larger than the ion fluence in a single HiPIMS pulse. Formation of the nitride or oxide layer is significantly slower in HiPIMS than in dc sputtering under identical conditions. Further, we explain very high discharge currents in HiPIMS by the formation of a truly stoichiometric compound during the discharge off-time. The compound has a very high secondary electron emission coefficient and leads to a large increase in the discharge current upon target poisoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microwave-driven plasmas operating near atmospheric pressure have been shown to be a promising technique for producing the high density of argon metastable atoms required for optically pumped rare gas laser systems. Stable microwave-driven plasmas can be generated at high pressures using microstrip-based resonator circuits. We present results from computational modeling and laser absorption measurements of argon metastable densities in such plasmas operating in argon-helium gas mixtures at pressures up to 300 Torr. The model and measurements resolve the plasma characteristics both perpendicular to the substrate surface and along the resonator length. The measurements qualitatively and in many aspects quantitatively confirm the accuracy of the model. The plasmas exhibit distinct behaviors depending on whether the operating gas is mostly argon or mostly helium. In high-argon plasmas, the metastable density has a large peak value but is confined very closely to the electrode surfaces as well as being reduced near the discharge gap itself. In contrast, metastable densities in high helium-fraction mixtures extend through most of the plasma. In all systems, increasing the power extends the region of metastable along the resonator length, while the extent away from the substrate surface remains approximately constant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanoparticles were grown in an argon-acetylene plasma, and the particle size was characterized during growth using imaging Mie ellipsometry (I-Mie). The typical cyclic growth was observed, and the previously reported expansion and contraction of the void before depletion of nanoparticles [van de Wetering et al., J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 48, 035204 (2015)] was independently confirmed in our measurements. The cyclic growth was interrupted by repetitively turning the acetylene flow on and off. The nanoparticles that were confined in the discharge proceeded to grow slowly but more importantly a new growth cycle started with nucleation and growth taking place in the void region. The additional growth burst in the void region leads to a structured dust cloud with regions of nanoparticles with different sizes that were sharply separated. The advantages of using the I-Mie diagnostics for the observation of nanoparticles compared to standard video microscopy are demonstrated for the structured dust cloud. The results are discussed in relation to the growth processes for nucleation and coagulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses a few mechanisms that can assist to answer the title question. The initial approach is to use an established model for DC magnetron sputter deposition, i.e., RSD2013. Based on this model, the impact on the hysteresis behaviour of some typical HiPIMS conditions is investigated. From this first study, it becomes clear that the probability to observe hysteresis is much lower as compared to DC magnetron sputtering. The high current pulses cannot explain the hysteresis reduction. Total pressure and material choice make the abrupt changes less pronounced, but the implantation of ionized metal atoms that return to the target seems to be the major cause. To further substantiate these results, the analytical reactive sputtering model is coupled with a published global plasma model. The effect of metal ion implantation is confirmed. Another suggested mechanism, i.e., gas rarefaction, can be ruled out to explain the hysteresis reduction. But perhaps the major conclusion is that at present, there are too little experimental data available to make fully sound conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microwave resonator-driven microplasmas are a promising technology for generating the high density of rare-gas metastable states required for optically pumped rare gas laser systems. We measure the density of argon 1s5 states (Paschen notation) in argon-helium plasmas between 100 Torr and atmospheric pressure using diode laser absorption. The metastable state density is observed to rise with helium mole fraction at lower pressures but to instead fall slightly when tested near atmospheric pressure. A 0-D model of the discharge suggests that these distinct behaviors result from the discharge being diffusion-controlled at lower pressures, but with losses occurring primarily through dissociative recombination at high pressures. In all cases, the argon metastable density falls sharply when the neutral argon gas fraction is reduced below approximately 2%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A surfaguide microwave discharge operating at 2.45 GHz in Ar and Ar-CO2 mixtures is studied using diagnostics methods based on optical emission spectroscopy. The population densities of Ar metastable and resonant states of the lowest group of excited levels (1sx) are investigated for several experimental conditions using the self-absorption technique. It is found that the densities of these levels, ranging from 1017 to 1016m-3 for the pure Ar case, are dependent on the discharge pressure and applied power. The electron temperature and electron density are calculated via the balances of creation/loss mechanisms of radiative and metastable levels. In the range of the studied experimental conditions (50-300W of applied power and 0.5-6 Torr of gas pressure), the results have shown that lower values of electron temperature correspond to higher values of power and pressure in the discharge. Adding CO2 to the argon plasma results in a considerable decrease (about 3 orders of magnitude) of the Ar metastable atom density. The feasibility of using the ratio of two Ar emission line intensities to measure the electron temperature in CO2 discharges with small Ar admixtures is studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electron kinetics in atmospheric-pressure argon and nitrogen microwave (4 GHz) microdischarges is studied using a self-consistent one-dimensional Particle-in-Cell Monte Carlo Collisions model. The reversal of electric field (i.e., inverted sheath formation) is obtained in nitrogen and is not obtained in argon. This is explained by the different energy dependencies of electron-neutral collision cross sections in atomic and molecular gases and, as a consequence, different drag force acting on electrons. A non-local behavior of electron energy distribution function is obtained in both gases owing to electrons are generated in the plasma sheath. In both gases, electron energy relaxation length is comparable with the interelectrode gap, and therefore, they penetrate the plasma bulk with large energies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We modify the theory of nanoscale patterns produced by ion bombardment with concurrent impurity deposition to take into account the effect that the near-surface impurities have on the collision cascades. As the impurity concentration is increased, the resulting theory successively yields a flat surface, a rippled surface with its wavevector along the projected direction of ion incidence, and a rippled surface with its wavevector rotated by 90°. Exactly the same morphological transitions were observed in recent experiments in which silicon was bombarded with an argon ion beam and gold was co-deposited [Moon et al., e-print arXiv:1601.02534]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon films synthesized by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and filtered cathodic vacuum arc (FCVA) exhibit a layered structure consisting of a bottom (interface) and a top (surface) layer rich in sp2 atomic carbon bonding and a middle (bulk) layer of much higher sp3 content. Because of significant differences in the composition, structure, and thickness of these layers, decreasing the film thickness may negatively affect its properties. In this study, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) were used to examine the effect of Ar+ ion irradiation on the structure and thickness of ultrathin films of hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) and hydrogen-free amorphous carbon (a-C) deposited by PECVD and FCVA, respectively. The TEM and EELS results show that 2-min ion irradiation decreases the film thickness without markedly changing the film structure and composition, whereas 4-min ion irradiation results in significant film thinning and a moderate decrease of the sp3 content of the bulk layer. This study demonstrates that Ar+ ion irradiation is an effective post-deposition process for reducing the thickness and tuning the structure of ultrathin carbon films. This capability has direct implications in the synthesis of ultrathin protective carbon overcoats for extremely high-density magnetic recording applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of self-organized surface patterns on Si due to noble gas ion irradiation has been studied extensively in the past. In particular, Ar ions are commonly used and the pattern formation was analyzed as function of ion incidence angle, ion fluence, and ion energies between 250 eV and 140 keV. Very few results exist for the energy regime between 1.5 keV and 10keV and it appears that pattern formation is completely absent for these ion energies. In this work, we present experimental data on pattern formation for Ar ion irradiation between 1 keV and 10 keV and ion incidence angles between 50° and 75°. We confirm the absence of patterns at least for ion fluences up to 1018 ions/cm². Using the crater function formalism and Monte Carlo simulations, we calculate curvature coefficients of linear continuum models of pattern formation, taking into account contribution due to ion erosion and recoil redistribution. The calculations consider the recently introduced curvature dependence of the erosion crater function as well as the dynamic behavior of the thickness of the ion irradiated layer. Only when taking into account these additional contributions to the linear theory, our simulations clearly show that that pattern formation is strongly suppressed between about 1.5 keV and 10 keV, most pronounced at 3 keV. Furthermore, our simulations are now able to predict whether or not parallel oriented ripple patterns are formed, and in case of ripple formation the corresponding critical angles for the whole experimentally studied energies range between 250eV and 140keV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, atmospheric pressure argon plasma jets driven by lower-power pulsed microwaves have been proposed with a type of hairpin resonator. The plasma jet plume demonstrates distinctive characteristics, like arched plasma pattern and local plasma bullets. In order to understand how the hairpin resonator works, electromagnetic simulation of the electric field distribution and self-consistent fluid simulation of the interaction between the enhanced electric field and the pulse plasma plume are studied. Simulated spatio-temporal distributions of the electric field, the electron temperature, the electron density, and the absorbed power density have been sampled, respectively. The experimental and simulated results together suggest that the driving mechanism of the hairpin resonator works in the multiple electromagnetic modes of transmission line and microwave resonator, while the local plasma bullets are resonantly generated by local enhanced electric field of surface plasmon polaritons. Moreover, it should be noticed that the radian of the arched plasma plume is mainly affected by the input power and gas flow rate, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We applied hard x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (HAXPES) to a sample under ambient pressure conditions using an environmental cell with an approximately 24 nm-thick SiNx membrane window. As a model chemical substance, europium (II) iodide (EuI2) sealed in the cell with argon gas was investigated with HAXPES to identify the chemical species present inside the cell. The optical and morphological properties of the sample within the cell were measured with optical and fluorescent microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, cathodoluminescence, and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry. We confirmed the effectiveness of the gas barrier properties of the cell with the SiNx window and demonstrated its applicability to various other optical and electron measurements as well as HAXPES. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time-resolved characterization of an Ar-Ti high-power impulse magnetron sputtering discharge has been performed. The present, second, paper of the study is related to the discharge characterization in terms of the absolute density of species using resonant absorption spectroscopy. The results on the time-resolved density evolution of the neutral and singly-ionized Ti ground state atoms as well as the metastable Ti and Ar atoms during the discharge on- and off-time are presented. Among the others, the questions related to the inversion of population of the Ti energy sublevels, as well as to re-normalization of the two-dimensional density maps in terms of the absolute density of species, are stressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time-resolved characterization of an Ar-Ti high-power impulse magnetron sputtering discharge has been performed. This paper deals with two-dimensional density mapping in the discharge volume obtained by laser-induced fluorescence imaging. The time-resolved density evolution of Ti neutrals, singly ionized Ti atoms (Ti+), and Ar metastable atoms (Armet) in the area above the sputtered cathode is mapped for the first time in this type of discharges. The energetic characteristics of the discharge species are additionally studied by Doppler-shift laser-induced fluorescence imaging. The questions related to the propagation of both the neutral and ionized discharge particles, as well as to their spatial density distributions, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We systematically measure and model the behavior of argon microplasmas sustained by a broad range of microwave frequencies. The plasma behavior exhibits two distinct regimes. Up to a transition frequency of approximately 4 GHz, the electron density, directly measured by Stark broadening, increases rapidly with rising frequency. Above the transition frequency, the density remains approximately constant near 5×1020m-3. The electrode voltage falls with rising frequency across both regimes, reaching approximately 5V at the highest tested frequency. A fluid model of the plasma indicates that the falling electrode voltage reduces the electron temperature and significantly improves particle confinement, which in turn increases the plasma density. Particles are primarily lost to the electrodes at lower frequencies, but dissociative recombination becomes dominant as particle confinement improves. Recombination events produce excited argon atoms which are efficiently re-ionized, resulting in relatively constant ionization rates despite the falling electron temperature. The fast rates of recombination are the result of high densities of electrons and molecular ions in argon microplasmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The propagation of an incident shock and subsequent rarefaction and compression waves in a porous media are analysed from a set of large scale molecular dynamics simulations. The porous material is modelized by a collection of spherical pores, empty or filled with dense gaseous argon, enclosed in a copper matrix. We observe that the pore collapse induces a strong local disorder in the matrix even for shock intensities below the melting point of shocked copper. Various mechanisms are considered and a detailed analysis of the numerical results shows that the melting around an isolated pore is mainly due to the plastic work induced by the collapse: a result that can be extended to more complicated pore shapes. The systematic study of the influence of the shock intensity, the pore size, and the presence of a filling gas shows that the melting is mainly inhibited by the presence of the gas. The final structure strongly depends on the interactions between the waves resulting from the various reflections of the initial shock at the sample boundaries, implying that the evaluation of the incident shock intensity based on post-mortem analyses requires a knowledge of the full history of the sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyrolytic carbon (PyC) coatings prepared by chemical vapor deposition were irradiated by 300 keV Ar+ ions. Then, atomic force microscopy, synchrotron-based grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were employed to study how Ar+ irradiation affects the microstructure of PyC, including the microstructural damage mechanisms and physics driving these phenomena. The 300 keV Ar+ ion irradiation deteriorated the structure along the c-axis, which increased the interlayer spacing between graphene layers. With increasing irradiation dose, the density of defect states on the surface of PyC coating increases, and the basal planes gradually loses their initial ordering resulting in breaks in the lattice and turbulence at the peak damage dose reaches 1.58 displacement per atom (dpa). Surprisingly, the PyC becomes more textured as it becomes richer in structural defects with increasing irradiation dose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy has been used to determine the Ar*(3P2) and Ar*(3P0) metastable atoms densities in dual-frequency capacitively coupled plasmas. The effects of different control parameters, such as high-frequency power, gas pressure and content of Ar, on the densities of two metastable atoms and electron density were discussed in single-frequency and dualfrequency Ar discharges, respectively. Particularly, the effects of the pressure on the axial profile of the electron and Ar metastable state densities were also discussed. Furthermore, a simple rate model was employed and its results were compared with experiments to analyze the main production and loss processes of Ar metastable states. It is found that Ar metastable state is mainly produced by electron impact excitation from the ground state, and decayed by diffusion and collision quenching with electrons and neutral molecules. Besides, the addition of CF4 was found to significantly increase the metastable destruction rate by the CF4 quenching, especially for large CF4 content and high pressure, it becomes the dominant depopulation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]