DETERMINATION OF ELECTRON ENERGY DISTRIBUTION IN AN ARGON RF PLASMA

Abstract

Electron energy distribution measurements were determined in an RF excited plasma and are feasible if the plasma is excited by a cylindrical coil fed push-pull from a balanced power source and if probe measurements are made along the axis of the coil. As far as is known, the measurements made during this investigation are the first energy measurements made in an RF plasma. The basic theory of plasma generation and general probe theory were reviewed; Medicus' spherical probe theory was used in making the determinations. Experimental equipment was designed and built and suggestions for improvement were made. The results indicated that in the argon RF plasma of this investigation, the energy distribution is markedly non-Maxwellian.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 1963
Accession Number
AD0419025

Entities

People

  • Raymond T. Beurket

Organizations

  • Air Force Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Coaxial Cables
  • Computers
  • Current Density
  • Distribution Curves
  • Distribution Functions
  • Electric Fields
  • Electron Energy
  • Ionization
  • Kinetic Energy
  • Magnetic Fields
  • Mean Free Path
  • Measurement
  • Metastable State
  • New York
  • Scattering
  • Transmitters

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Plasma Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics