Cathodic arc carbon plasma/gas interaction in fullerenes synthesis study

Abstract

Cathodic arc plasmas show characteristics similar to the fullerene producing laser ablation plasmas. Experimental and theoretical results on cathodic arc systems are applied to study the possible zones of formation of the large carbon molecules. These are believed to form in a relatively localized region whose position is governed by basic gas and expanding plasma parameters. A snowplow plasma expansion model gives a probable zone for the nucleation of larger carbon molecule located at 3 mm from the cathode for a 120 A arc in 55 Torr of helium. This correlates with preliminary spectroscopic measurements of C2 molecular radiation emission observed in pulsed cathodic arc plasma discharges in helium.