paper 150417052702

Published: 2015-07-09

Studies of the RF Energy Delivery Mechanism and Its Reformation in the Low Pressure ICP Discharge

Artur F. Piskunkov,

Artur F. Piskunkov

Research Institute of Applied Mechanics and Electrodynamics of the Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University), Russia

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Valentin A. Riaby

Research Institute of Applied Mechanics and Electrodynamics of the Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University), Russia

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Proceedings of 2015 Photonics & Electromagnetics Research Symposium, Prague, July 6 - 9，Page(s)609-614

Abstract

The model of a cylindrical inductively coupled plasma (ICP) discharge based on movable current layers travelling towards the axis of discharge space from the steady-state skin sheath at the external plasma boundary has been proposed. Current layers act like magnetic electrostatic traps catching electrons with small pinch-angles that are responsible for gas atom ionization. Movement of the layers induces electric field excites currents. At the optimal driving frequency magnetic field of a definite sign fills all discharge space during current half-period in the process of convective diffusion and eventually it is replaced by the field of opposite sign. Ohmic losses in the current layers are compensated by annihilation of magnetic field. The layers are formed by the Hall Effect while their boundary areas are shaped in a forceless magnetic field. They have form of one-turn spirals and their pairs are short-circuited in the edge plasma areas. Concentration of trapped layer particles is determined from the equation for trapped electrons entering and leaving the layer by way of single-shot Coulomb collisions at the pinch-angle. Discharge power loss, ion energy price and electron temperature are calculated at different argon pressures for the discharge chamber of 35 cm external radius. Comparison with published ex- perimental data showed that the proposed model satisfactorily describes the main ICP discharge characteristics.

Citation

Artur F. Piskunkov, and Valentin A. Riaby, "Studies of the RF Energy Delivery Mechanism and Its Reformation in the Low Pressure ICP Discharge," Proceedings of 2015 Photonics & Electromagnetics Research Symposium, Prague, July 6 - 9，Page(s)609-614

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