Plasma and Beam Physics Commons^™

The Adaptability Of Langmuir Probes To The Pico-Satellite Regime, Andrew Jay Auman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate whether it is feasible to use Langmuir probes on pico-satellites flying in low Earth orbit over mid- to low-latitude geographic regions. Following chapters on the expected ionospheric conditions and an overview of Langmuir probe theory, a chapter addressing the difficulties involved with pico-satellite Langmuir probes is presented. Also, the necessary satellite-to-probe surface area requirements in order to achieve confidence in pico-satellite Langmuir probe data, for the orbital regions of interest to this thesis, are stated.

Hand-Held Flyback Driven Coaxial Dielectric Barrier Discharge: Development And Characterization, Victor J. Law, Vladimir Milosavljevic, Neil O’Connor, James F. Lalor, Steven Daniels

Articles

The development of a handheld single and triple chamber atmospheric pressure coaxial dielectric barrier discharge driven by Flyback circuitry for helium and argon discharges is described. The Flyback uses external metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor power switching technology and the transformer operates in the continuous current mode to convert a continuous dc power of 10–33 W to generate a 1.2–1.6 kV 3.5 μs pulse. An argon discharge breakdown voltage of ∼768 V is measured. With a 50 kHz, pulse repetition rate and an argon flow rate of 0.5–10 argon slm (slm denotes standard liters per minute), the electrical power density deposited in …

Electronic State Distributions Of Y Ba2Cu3O7-X Laser Ablated Plumes, Patrick D. Kee

Theses and Dissertations

The application of spectral and imagery diagnostics to YBa₂Cu₃O₇ (YBCO) laser-ablated plumes was systematically studied to determine their effectiveness for process control. Emission signatures were collected for plumes created by ablating bulk YBCO with a pulsed laser source. A KrF (λ=248 nm) laser source operating at 4-10 J/cm² at a 4-10 Hz pulse repetition frequency was used to ablate a bulk YBCO target at O₂ background pressures ranging from 50 to 400 mTorr. Emission spectra were collected over the 500 to 860 nm bandpass at distances from the target ranging from 31.4 to …

Electron Density And Electron Neutral Collision Frequency In The Ionosphere Using Plasma Impedance Probe Measurement, E. Spencer, S. Patra, T. Andriyas, C. Swenson, J. Ward, A. Barjatya

Publications

Swept Impedance Probe measurements in a sporadic E layer observed during the Sudden Atomic Layer (SAL) sounding rocket mission are analyzed to obtain absolute electron densities and electron neutral collision frequencies accurately. Three sets of upleg and downleg impedance data are selected for the analysis. Initial estimates of the plasma parameters are obtained through a least mean square fit of the measured impedance data against the analytical impedance formula ZB(f ) of Balmain (1969). These initial parameters are used as a starting point to drive a finite difference computational model of an antenna immersed in a plasma called PF-FDTD. The …

Observations Of Neutral Depletion And Plasma Acceleration In A Flowing High-Power Argon Helicon Plasma, C. Mark Denning, Matt Wiebold, John E. Scharer

Physics Faculty Publications

Neutral depletion effects are observed in a steady-state flowing argon helicon plasma with a magnetic nozzle for high rf input powers (up to 3 kW). Noninvasive diagnostics including 105 GHz microwave interferometry and optical spectroscopy with collisional-radiative modeling are used to measure the electron density (n_e), electron temperature (T_e), and neutral density (n_n). A region of weak neutral depletion is observed upstream of the antenna where increasing rf power leads to increased electron density (up to n_e = 1.6×10¹³ cm^-3) while T_e remains essentially constant and …

Characterizing Effects And Benefits Of Beam Defocus On High Energy Laser Performance Under Thermal Blooming And Turbulence Conditions For Air-To-Ground Engagements, Scott N. Long

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation makes contributions towards knowledge of optimizing of laser weapon performance when operating in the air-to-ground (ATG) regime in thermal blooming conditions. Wave optics modeling techniques were used to represent laser weapon performance in a high fidelity sense to allow progress to be made toward improving lower-fidelity scaling laws that can be used in systems level analysis which has need for better representations of thermal blooming. Chemical-oxygen iodine laser (COIL) based weapon systems that operate near the ground will experience thermal blooming due to atmospheric absorption if output power is sufficiently high. The thermal lens in the ATG case …

Real-Time Plasma Controlled Chemistry In A Two-Frequency, Confined Plasma Etcher, Vladimir Milosavljevic, Albert R. Ellingboe, Cezar Gaman, John V. Ringwood

Articles

The physics issues of developing model-based control of plasma etching are presented. A novel methodology for incorporating real-time model-based control of plasma processing systems is developed. The methodology is developed for control of two dependent variables (ion flux and chemical densities) by two independent controls (27 MHz power and O2flow). A phenomenological physics model of the nonlinear coupling between the independent controls and the dependent variables of the plasma is presented. By using a design of experiment, the functional dependencies of the response surface are determined. In conjunction with the physical model, the dependencies are used to deconvolve the sensor …

Demonstration Of A Strategy To Perform Two-Dimensional Diode Laser Tomography, Ryan N. Givens

Theses and Dissertations

Demonstration of a strategy to perform two-dimensional diode laser tomography using a priori knowledge from symmetry arguments and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) calculations is presented for a flat flame burner. The strategy uses an optimization technique to determine flame diameter and location using a vector quantization approach. Next, the variance in a training set, produced from CFD calculations, is captured using principal components analysis. The information in the training set allows interpolation between beam paths resulting in temperature and density maps. Finally, the TDLAS temperature and density maps are shown to agree with traditional thermocouple measurements of the flat flame …

Modulation Response Of Twin Optically Coupled Diode Lasers, Eric M. Golden

Theses and Dissertations

Diode lasers are useful in military and commercial applications that have strict requirements for size, weight and power. This includes the use of diode lasers in optoelectronic and photonic integrated circuits, which can lead to new technologies in optical communications and optical interconnects in high performance computing systems. For these systems to be effective, the diode laser must be modulated at frequencies beyond current limits which are typically a few GHz. This barrier can be broken by optically coupling a diode laser with a similar laser. A set of single mode rate equations models the dynamics of twin optically coupled …

Production And Characterization Of Femtosecond-Laser-Induced Air Plasma, David R. Armbruster

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to produce, characterize, and optimize laser induced air plasma as a preliminary step in using the plasma as a source of terahertz radiation. An 800 nanometer, 50 femtosecond, 0.75 Watt, pulsed Ti:Sapphire laser system was used as the source infrared beam. A beam expander was used to expand the beam to a diameter of approximately 6.5 mm, and the beam was focused through a 25 mm focal length achromatic lens to produce laser-induced plasma in ambient air. A 40 kHz ultrasonic transducer was used to detect the plasma. A second harmonic generation crystal was …

Ultrafast Spectroscopy Of Mid-Infrared Semiconductors Using The Signal And Idler Beams Of A Synchronous Optical Parametric Oscillator, Richard M. Derbis

Theses and Dissertations

Mid-Wave Infrared (MWIR) semiconductors are of use to the Air Force for several applications. Ultrafast spectroscopy can be used to better quantify the effectiveness of semiconductor opto-electronic devices. The objective of this thesis was to improve the procedure for taking ultrafast, time-resolved measurements of photoluminescence from MWIR semiconductors. Previous work has used a mode-locked titanium sapphire (Ti:Saph) laser to excite the semiconductor sample and to upconvert the photoluminescence from the semiconductor. Work completed in this thesis improved on the techniques developed during previous work. A synchronous Optical Parameter Oscillator (OPO) will be used to convert the Ti:Saph laser (0.830 µm) …

Measuring Dispersion In Laser Cavity Mirrors Using White-Light Interferometry, Allison S. Goodspeed

Theses and Dissertations

Terahertz radiation is an emerging field that has far reaching applications. There is a need for portable and affordable terahertz sources that may be used for detection of structural weaknesses in aerospace composites. One possibility for terahertz generation is a femtosecond Cr:LiSAF laser. However, controlling intracavity dispersion is necessary in order to get the ultrashort pulses needed to generate terahertz radiation. This research measures dispersion of the chirped femtosecond intracavity mirrors by employing white-light interferometry and explains the theory behind the curve-fitting process used to calculate dispersion. To compensate for the narrow reflectivity band of the mirrors, a CaF_{2 …}

Cold Atmospheric Pressure Air Plasma Jet For Medical Applications, Juergen Friedrich Kolb, A.-A H. Mohamed, R. O. Price, R. J. Swanson, A. Bowman, R. L. Chiavarini, Michael W. Stacey

Bioelectrics Publications

By flowing atmospheric pressure air through a direct current powered microhollow cathode discharge, we were able to generate a 2 cm long plasma jet. With increasing flow rate, the flow becomes turbulent and temperatures of the jet are reduced to values close to room temperature. Utilizing the jet, yeast grown on agar can be eradicated with a treatment of only a few seconds. Conversely, animal studies show no skin damage even with exposures ten times longer than needed for pathogen extermination. This cold plasma jet provides an effective mode of treatment for yeast infections of the skin.

Interactions Of Electrons And Rydberg Atoms In Ultra-Cold Plasmas, Cristian Vesa

Honors Theses

This thesis discusses an experimental technique for investigating electron temperature control by Rydberg atoms in ultra-cold plasmas. The objective we set ourselves was twofold. Firstly, we sought to gain an insight into the processes whereby the creation of Rydberg atoms within the plasma lengthens the lifetime of the plasma. To this end, we created the plasma using a Littman dye laser and subsequently, at a variable time delay, we excited neutral atoms in the plasma to specific Rydberg states using a narrow bandwidth pulsed dye laser. Secondly, we employed radio-frequency (rf) electric fields to excite electron oscillations within the plasma …

A Mode-Locked Vertical Extended Cavity Surface Emitting Laser, Aoife Deburca

Theses

Surface emitting lasers are a competitive and flexible alternative to edge emitting lasers. The surface-emitting laser has many useful characteristics, which make it beneficial for many applications. These characteristics include the ease of testing during the growth and the fundamental mode output that is effortlessly achieved

The thesis is focused on the Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Laser due to its increased flexibility beyond that of the Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser. A wide range of possible parameters are detailed allowing for flexibility in design and applications.

Optically pumped pulsed cavity configurations were investigated in relation to intra-cavity devices and …

Hypersonic Boundary Layer Receptivity To Acoustic Disturbances Over Cones, Kursat Kara

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The receptivity mechanisms of hypersonic boundary layers to free stream acoustic disturbances are studied using both linear stability theory (LST) and direct numerical simulations (DNS). A computational code is developed for numerical simulation of steady and unsteady hypersonic flow over cones by combining a fifth-order weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO) scheme with third-order total-variation-diminishing (TVD) Runge-Kutta method. Hypersonic boundary layer receptivity to free-stream acoustic disturbances in slow and fast modes over 5-degree, half-angle blunt cones and wedges are numerically investigated. The free-stream Mach number is 6.0, and the unit Reynolds number is 7.8×106/ft. Both the steady and unsteady solutions are obtained …

Sublethal And Killing Effects Of Atmospheric-Pressure, Nonthermal Plasma On Eukaryotic Microalgae In Aqueous Media, Ying Zhong Tang, Xin Pei Lu, Mounir Laroussi, Fred C. Dobbs

OES Faculty Publications

In-depth studies on the interaction of nonthermal plasmas with microorganisms usually focus on bacteria; only little attention has been given to their effects on more complex eukaryotic cells. We report here nonthermal plasma's effects on cell motility, viability staining, and morphology of eukaryotic microalgae, with three marine dinoflagellates and a marine diatom as major targets. The effects on motility and viability staining depended on the time of exposure to plasma and the species of microalgae. We observed a strong pH decrease in aqueous samples (marine and freshwater algal cultures, their culture media, and deionized water) after exposure to plasma, and …

Electron Density And Temperature Measurement Of An Atmospheric Pressure Plasma By Millimeter Wave Interferometer, Xinpei Lu, Mounir Laroussi

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

In this paper, a 105 GHz millimeter wave interferometer system is used to measure the electron density and temperature of an atmospheric pressure helium plasma driven by submicrosecond pulses. The peak electron density and electron-neutral collision frequency reach 8 X 10¹² cm^-3 and 2.1 X 10¹² s^-1, respectively. According to the electron-helium collision cross section and the measured electron-neutral collision frequency, the electron temperature of the plasma is estimated to reach a peak value of about 8.7 eV.

Plasma Medicine, Mounir Laroussi, Alexander Fridman

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Recent demonstrations of plasma technology in the treatment of living cells, tissues, and organs are creating a newfield at the intersection of plasma science and technology with biology and medicine - Plasma Medicine.