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An effective surface charge removal is critical to diverse applications of polymer and other soft organic materials in electrical devices and systems. Here, we report on the application of atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge (AP-DBD) to deposit SiOx thin films to improve the surface charge dissipation on an epoxy resin surface. The SiOx nanofilms are formed at atmospheric pressure, with the replacement of organic groups (C-H, C=O and C=C) with inorganic groups (Si-O-Si and Si-OH) within the thin surface layer. After the plasma deposition, the initial surface charge decreased by 12% and the surface charge dissipation was accelerated. The flashover voltage which characterizes the insulation property of the epoxy resin is increased by 42%. These improvements are attributed to the lower density of shallow charge traps introduced by SiOx film deposition, which also corresponds to the surface conductivity increase. These results suggest that the SiOx deposition by AP-DBD is promising to accelerate surface charge dissipation. This method is generic, applicable for other types of precursors and may open new avenues for the development of next-generation organic-inorganic insulation materials with customized charge dissipation properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A needle-circular electrode structure helium plasma jet driven by microsecond pulsed power is studied. Spatially resolved emission results show that the emission intensity of He(33S1) line decreases monotonically along the axial direction, while those of N2(C3Πu), N2 + (B2 Σ+ u), and O (3p5P) reach their maxima at 3 cm, 2.6 cm, and 1.4 cm, respectively. The plasma plume of the four species shows different characteristics: The N2 emission plume travels at a fast speed along the entire plasma jet; the N2 + emission plume is composed of a bright head and relatively weak tail and travels a shorter distance than the N2 emission plume; the He emission plume travels at a slower speed for only a very short distance; propagation of the O emission plume is not observed. Results of calculation of radiation fluxes emitted by positive streamers propagating along helium plasma jets are presented. It is shown, in agreement with the results of the present experiment and with other available experimental data, that the intensities of radiation of N2(C3Πu) molecules and He(33S1) atoms vary with time (along the plasma jet) quite differently. The factors resulting in this difference are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1:2 B-site cation ordered Ba(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3 ceramic was synthesized using conventional solid-state reaction at 1600 °C for 12 h. The structure parameters were obtained through Rietveld refinement of X-ray diffraction data. The Raman peak frequencies were obtained by Lorenz fitting on Raman spectrum. Four-parameter semiquantum model was used to fit the infrared (IR) reflectivity spectrum, and the fitted parameters were used to calculate the dielectric permittivity e and dielectric loss tand. A total of 9 active Raman and 16 active IR modes were obtained using first-principle calculations based on density functional theory with local density approximation. All of the vibrational modes were assigned and represented by linear combinations of the symmetry coordinates deduced using group theory analysis. The Raman mode with the highest frequency A1g (4) (789 cm-1) can be described as the breathing vibration of NbO6. The IR modes Eu (1) (149 cm-1) and A2u (2) (212 cm-1), which can be described as the twisting vibrations of Ba-MgO6/Ba-NbO6 on the a-b plane and the stretching vibrations of Ba-MgO6/Ba-NbO6 along the c direction, respectively, are the dominant contributing modes to e and tand. The dielectric property parameters obtained using IR spectrum fittings, first-principal calculations, and microwave measurements were compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasma actuator based on surface dielectric barrier discharge for active flow control has been widely investigated due to broad application prospects. In order to obtain extensive surface plasma, a plasma actuator based on a three-electrode structure sustained by nanosecond-pulse and DC sources is investigated. In this paper, the correlation between actuator parameters (especially in DC source polarity) and discharge characteristics is presented. The experimental results show that the plasma length is extended up to the third electrode due to a sliding discharge induced by a negative DC voltage. The negative DC voltage has a significant effect on the discharge current and propagation velocity of the slide discharge. Compared to the negative DC voltage, the plasma actuator with a positive DC voltage is difficult to induce a sliding discharge. Moreover, the spectrum characteristics, pressure wave, and vortex characteristics are investigated by means of time-resolved spectrum and schlieren visualization, respectively. The vortex characteristics indicate that the sliding discharge at a negative DC voltage induces two jets in opposite directions. However, the vortex characteristics with a positive DC voltage show that the air flow can be induced closer to the dielectric surface than those with a negative DC voltage. It is because a larger perturbation region in the case of positive DC voltage is beneficial to jet acceleration and thus enhances the flow control capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the uniformity of a microsecond pulse driven argon plasma jet array is studied by optimizing experimental parameters, such as the ground electrode position d, gas flow rate, and pulse frequency. The results show that when d is less than 10 mm, there are always two plasma jets that cannot be ignited; while all jets are ignited with equal length at d=12.5 mm. The plasma jet transition from laminar to turbulent at 6 l/min, presenting a "bead-like" structure. The jet length increases with the pulse repetition frequency and reaches a plateau at around 1.5 kHz. The ICCD images show that the plasma jets emerged preferably from the two quartz tubings located at the two ends of the linear array. The spatial-temporal resolved spectra show that the Ar emission (763.5 nm) and N2 emission (337.1 nm) at the end of the array (e.g., Jet #1) appeared earlier than that of the jet in the middle (e.g., Jet #2). On the contrary, the emission intensities of Ar in Jet #2 are higher than in Jet #1. This is due to the higher electric field and air diffusion at the plasma array boundary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Runaway electron (RAE) with extremely high-energy plays important role on the avalanche propagation, streamer formation, and ionization waves in nanosecond-pulse discharges. In this paper, the generation of a supershort avalanche electron beam (SAEB) in SF6 and air in an inhomogeneous electric field is investigated. A VPG-30-200 generator with a pulse rise time of ~1.6 ns and a full width at half maximum of 3-5 ns is used to produce RAE beams. The SAEBs in SF6 and air are measured by using aluminum foils with different thicknesses. Furthermore, the SAEB spectra in SF6 and air at pressures of 7.5 Torr, 75 Torr, and 750 Torr are compared. The results showed that amplitude of RAE beam current generated at the breakdown in SF6 was approximately an order of magnitude less than that in air. The energy of SAEB in air was not smaller than that in SF6 in nanosecond-pulse discharges under otherwise equal conditions. Moreover, the difference between the maximum energy of the electron distributions in air and SF6 decreased when the rise time of the voltage pulse increased. It was because the difference between the breakdown voltages in air and SF6 decreased when the rise time of the voltage pulse increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diffuse discharges preionized by runaway electrons can produce large-area homogeneous discharges at elevated pressures, which is an intriguing phenomenon in the physics of pulsed discharges. In this paper, runaway-electron-preionized diffuse discharge (REP DD) was obtained in a wide pressure range (0.05-0.25 MPa), and under certain conditions a positive streamer and a cathode-directed spark leader could be observed to propagate at some angles to the applied (background) electric field lines. For a 16-mm gap at an air pressure of 0.08-0.1MPa, the percentage of pulses in which such propagation is observed is about 5%-50% of their total number, and in the other pulses such bent paths could not be observed because there is even no streamer or cathode-directed spark leader in diffuse discharges. In our opinion, such propagation of the positive streamer and the cathode-directed spark leader at some angle to the background electric field lines owes to different increase rates of the electron density in different regions of the discharge volume under REP DD conditions. Therefore, during the formation of a REP DD, the increase of the electron density is inhomogeneous and nonsimultaneous, resulting in an electron density gradient at the ionization wave front. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Power source is an important parameter that can affect the characteristics of atmospheric-pressure plasma jets (APPJs), because it can play a key role on the discharge characteristics and ionization process of APPJs. In this paper, the characteristics of helium APPJs sustained by both nanosecondpulse and microsecond-pulse generators are compared from the aspects of plume length, discharge current, consumption power, energy, and optical emission spectrum. Experimental results showed that the pulsed APPJ was initiated near the high-voltage electrode with a small curvature radius, and then the stable helium APPJ could be observed when the applied voltage increased. Moreover, the discharge current of the nanosecond-pulse APPJ was larger than that of the microsecond-pulse APPJ. Furthermore, although the nanosecond-pulse generator consumed less energy than the microsecond-pulse generator, longer plume length, larger instantaneous power per pulse and stronger spectral line intensity could be obtained in the nanosecond-pulse excitation case. In addition, some discussion indicated that the rise time of the applied voltage could play a prominent role on the generation of APPJs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymer materials, such as polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), are widely used as insulators in vacuum. The insulating performance of a high-voltage vacuum system is mainly limited by surface flashover of the insulators rather than bulk breakdown. Non-thermal plasmas are an efficient method to modify the chemical and physical properties of polymer material surfaces, and enhance the surface insulating performance. In this letter, an atmospheric-pressure dielectric barrier discharge is used to treat the PMMA surface to improve the surface flashover strength in vacuum. Experimental results indicate that the plasma treatment method using Ar and CF4 (10:1) as the working gas can etch the PMMA surface, introduce fluoride groups to the surface, and then alter the surface characteristics of the PMMA. The increase in the surface roughness can introduce physical traps that can capture free electrons, and the fluorination can enhance the charge capturing ability. The increase in the surface roughness and the introduction of the fluoride groups can enhance the PMMA hydrophobic ability, improve the charge capturing ability, decrease the secondary electron emission yield, increase the surface resistance, and improve the surface flashover voltage in vacuum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasma jet array is a promising device for producing low-temperature plasma at atmospheric pressure. In our letter, the effect of O2 additive on spatial uniformity of one-dimensional helium plasma jet array is described. The length of the plasma jet in the middle of the array before the injection of O2 additive is less than that on the edges of the array. However, when a small amount of O2 additive is injected into the plasma jet array, the length increases and becomes approximately the same as the length of the plasma jets on the edges of the array. The improvement of spatial uniformity of the plasma jet array is due to the enhancement of the Penning ionization in the plasma jets caused by O2 additive. Too much quantity of O2 additive, however, may lead to discharge quenching in the plasma jet array. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface dielectric barrier discharge (SDBD) is a promising method for a flow control. Flow fields induced by a SDBD actuator driven by the ac voltage in static air at low pressures varying from 1.0 to 27.7 kPa are measured by the particle image velocimetry method. The influence of the applied ac voltage frequency and magnitude on the induced flow fields is studied. The results show that three different classes of flow fields (wall jet flow field, complex flow field, and vortex-shape flow field) can be induced by the SDBD actuator in the low-pressure air. Among them, the wall jet flow field is the same as the tangential jet at atmospheric pressure, which is, together with the vertical jet, the complex flow field. The vortex-shape flow field is composed of one vertical jet which points towards the wall and two opposite tangential jets. The complex and the vortex-shape flow fields can be transformed to the wall jet flow field when the applied ac voltage frequency and magnitude are changed. It is found that the discharge power consumption increases initially, decreases, and then increases again at the same applied ac voltage magnitude when the air pressure decreases. The tangential velocity of the wall jet flow field increases when the air pressure decreases. It is however opposite for the complex flow field. The variation of the applied ac voltage frequency influences differently three different flow fields. When the applied ac voltage magnitude increases at the same applied ac voltage frequency, the maximal jet velocity increases, while the power efficiency increases only initially and then decreases again. The discharge power shows either linear or exponential dependences on the applied ac voltage magnitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]