Particle nucleation and growth in dusty plasmas: On the importance of charged-neutral interactions

Abstract

Particle nucleation and growth in gases involves nucleation via growth of small molecular or ionic clusters, growth by vapor deposition on nanoparticle surfaces, and coagulation due to collisions between nanoparticles. Under typical conditions that apply in low-pressure nonthermal plasmas, all three of these phenomena are dominated by interactions between negatively charged bodies (anion clusters or nanoparticles) and neutral ones (molecules or nanoparticles), with collision rates enhanced by the dipole or image potential induced in the neutral collision partner. The current understanding of these phenomena is reviewed, with a focus on silane-containing plasmas in which silicon nanoparticles nucleate and grow.