Installation for Preparing of Nanopowders by Target Evaporation with Pulsed Electron Beam

Abstract

Production of weakly agglomerated nanopowders with the characteristic size of about 10 nm and a narrow particle size distribution is still a topical problem especially if the matter is an acceptable output (>50 g/hour), a high purity of the final product, and a low (energy consumption. The available experience and literature data show that the most promising approach to production of such powders is the evaporation-condensation method, which has a set of means for heating of the target. From this viewpoint the use of pulsed electron accelerators for production of nanopowders is preferable since they allow a relatively simple adjustment of the energy, the pulse length, and the pulse repetition rate. The use of a pulsed electron accelerator provides the following opportunities: a high-purity product; only the target and the working gas will interact and their purity can be controlled; evaporation products will be removed from the irradiation zone between pulses; as a result, the electron energy will be used more efficiently; adjustment of the particle size distribution and the characteristic size of particles by changing the pulse energy and the irradiated area. Considering the obtained results, we developed a design and made an installation for production of nanopowders, which is based on a hollow-cathode pulsed gas-filled diode. The use of a hollow-cathode gas-filled diode allows producing and utilizing an electron beam in a single chamber. The emission modulation in the hollow cathode will allow forming an electron beam 5 to 100 ms long. This will ensure an exact selection of the beam energy. By now we have completed the design work, manufactured units, equipped the installation, and began putting the installation into operation. A small amount of nanopowders has been produced.