Work

Electron density measurements and calculations in a helium capacitively-coupled radio-frequency plasma

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: We report a comparison of inferred electron density ( n e ) in a He capacitively-coupled plasma, deduced from laser-collision induced fluorescence measurements, with values computed using a hybrid simulation framework based on particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisions simulations and a fluid model for excited He atoms. The studies were carried out for gas pressures between 50 mTorr and 1000 mTorr and peak-to-peak radio-frequency (13.56 MHz) voltages between 150 V and 350 V, in a highly symmetric source equipped with plane-parallel electrodes. A good agreement is found between the experimental and modeling results for n e except at the lowest operating voltages and gas pressures. The (effective) electron temperature ( T e ) values derived by the two methods agree as well reasonably within the plasma bulk. The simulation results are used to compare the density distributions of He+ and various He excited levels and their major populating and de-populating channels at 100 mTorr and 1000 mTorr.

Source: Plasma Sources Science and Technology

DOI: 10.1088/1361-6595/adb178

Authors: Brian Z Bentz, Peter Hartmann, Aranka Derzsi, Kevin Youngman, Zoltán Donkó

Institutions: Sandia National Laboratories, HUN-REN Wigner Research Centre for Physics

Language: English

Topic: Plasma Diagnostics and Applications

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,325

Funders: Wigner Fizikai Kutatóközpont, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, Fusion Energy Sciences, Sandia National Laboratories