Abstract
Radio frequency driven plasma jets are compact plasma sources which are used in many advanced fields such as surface engineering or biomedicine. The MMWICP (miniature micro wave ICP) is a particular variant of that device class. Unlike other plasma jets which employ capacitive coupling, the MMWICP uses the induction principle. The jet is integrated into a miniature cavity structure which realizes an LC-resonator with a high quality factor. When excited at its resonance frequency, the resonator develops a high internal current which—transferred to the plasma via induction—provides an efficient source of RF power. This work presents a theoretical model of the MMWICP. The possible operation points of the device are analyzed. Two different regimes can be identified, the capacitive E-mode with a plasma density of ne ≈ 5 × 1017 m−3, and the inductive H-mode with densities of ne ⩾ 1019 m−3. The E to H transition shows a pronounced hysteresis behavior.
Highlights
Plasma processes can be classified into ‘direct’ and ‘remote’ [1]
Among the sources suitable for remote plasma processes, radio frequency driven (RF) plasma jets play a important role [2,3,4,5,6]. They are usually operated in a capacitive mode: the RF power is applied to a set of co-planar or co-axial electrodes which results in a strong electric field in the interior of the jet
The miniature microwave Inductively coupled plasmas (ICPs) (MMWICP), a microwave driven plasma jet based on the principle of inductive coupling, was investigated via mathematical modeling
Summary
Plasma processes can be classified into ‘direct’ and ‘remote’ [1]. In direct plasma processes, the generation and application of the plasma are co-located: a work-piece is introduced into a plasma chamber and processed therein. Among the sources suitable for remote plasma processes, radio frequency driven (RF) plasma jets play a important role [2,3,4,5,6] They are usually operated in a capacitive mode: the RF power is applied to a set of co-planar or co-axial electrodes which results in a strong electric field in the interior of the jet. Research on small scale ICP jets was less sucessful [14,15,16]: it was not clear whether the inductive ‘H-mode’ was reached or just a parasitic ‘E-mode’ caused by the capacitive coupling of the RF voltage at the coil.
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