Effects of gas adsorbed on solid surface during gas breakdown in electron cyclotron resonance discharges

Abstract

The microwave breakdown power (P wb) in an ECR plasma source was not merely determined by pressure (gas flow rate), but found to vary with the time interval between two successive breakdowns. The measured P wb dropped rapidly from a high value at a short time interval to a low level at a long time interval. The obtained dependence of P wb on pressure (gas flow rate) exhibited distinct features: the normal monotonicity and abnormal non-monotonicity at the short and long time intervals, respectively. The effective zone in the antenna’s surface, bombarded by hot electrons heated in the ECR layer, was validated by (1) masking the antenna with a film having a variable radius; (2) calculating the distribution of the vertical component of the microwave electric field with respect to the static magnetic field; and (3) imaging glows of transient breakdown discharges with a fast camera. The reduction in P wb was mainly attributed to the enhanced emission of δ-electrons from the gas-adsorbed antenna under the bombardment of energetic electrons coming from the ECR layer. The correlation between the dynamic gas coverage and the emission coefficient of δ-electrons was established to understand the abnormal ECR breakdown features.