Comparison of ion source plasma responses to extraction grid bias between hydrogen and deuterium operations in NIFS-RNIS

Abstract

An isotope effect of negative ion motion in plasma near a plasma grid (PG), which is a plasma-beam boundary grid, has been investigated in a negative hydrogen-ion source with the surface production process of the negative ion on the PG surface. Negative deuterium-ion (D-) density was higher than negative hydrogen-ion (H-) density in the condition without extraction-grid bias (V egb) and approached the H- density in the condition with V egb. Thus, the D- density responded stronger than the H- density to the V egb. The density of the negative hydrogen-ion isotopes and the density response to the V egb have been organized into respective identical trends by momenta of isotopes emitting from the PG. The Larmor motion can be a dominant mechanism of the negative ion transport from the PG to the plasma.