The secondary ionization wave and characteristic map of surface discharge plasma in a wide time scale

Yifei Zhu,Yun Wu

doi:10.1088/1367-2630/abc2e7

Abstract

The surface discharge is the elementary process in a broad range of low temperature plasma applications. Variation of voltage profiles with different time scales leads to the redistribution of deposited energy as well as electro-hydrodynamic forces of surface discharges, while the mechanism and scaling law is still unknown. On the basis of theoretical and numerical analysis, we show that a secondary surface ionization wave forms during the voltage rising slope when electron density decreases to a critical level while the voltage is still rising. A characteristic map of energy and electro-hydrodynamics force in time scales between 1 ns and 0.1 s at atmospheric pressure is proposed, opening the door towards the target-directed design of surface discharges.

Highlights

On the basis of theoretical and numerical analysis, we show that a secondary surface ionization wave forms during the voltage rising slope when electron density decreases to a critical level while the voltage is still rising
In this Letter we perform simulations to show the propagation of the surface ionization waves in conditions close to those of [7], i.e., in air at atmospheric pressure driven by voltages of different rising slopes
If the voltage rising time is longer than the time required for the electron density decaying to below 3 ∼ 5 × 1019 m−3, it is possible that the secondary surface ionization wave appears

Summary

Introduction

In this Letter we perform simulations to show the propagation of the surface ionization waves in conditions close to those of [7], i.e., in air at atmospheric pressure driven by voltages of different rising slopes. Based on the experimental data, simulations and the analytical solutions summarized in this work, we propose a general scheme of energy and electro-hydrodynamic force characteristics of surface discharge plasma as functions of voltage rising time and amplitude.

Results

Conclusion