Engineering Commons^™

Density And Velocity Measurement Of Ari And Arii Using Laser Induced Fluorescence (Lif) In A Large-Scale Helicon Plasma, Ralph F. Kelly

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Helicon plasma sources are widely used in basic plasma science, as well as for materials processing. These plasmas typically operate at high gas fill pressure, and therefore have significant densities of neutral particles. However, the role of neutrals in the overall plasma dynamics, such as ion flows, remains poorly understood. There are at least two possible mechanisms for neutrals to influence ion flows. One is an FxB drift, where F is the force exerted on ions by neutrals through collisions. The second is through Pedersen conductivity which is dependent on the ratio of the ion cyclotron frequency, ω …