Progress on an ion diode system for commercial surface treatment applications

Summary form only given. Quantum Manufacturing Technologies (QMT) is a private company pursuing the goal of providing commercial surface treatment technologies using intense pulsed ion beams. The requirements for commercial/industrial implementation are greater than 1 Hz continuous operation, very long lifetimes (>10000 pulses between maintenance and >100000 pulses between part replacement), a high level of reliability and reproducibility of the beam parameters, moderate energy densities (1-6 J/cm/sup 2/), a fairly large beam footprint (>50 cm/sup 2/ at the required energy density), and no particulate debris in the beam. The first system developed at QMT for use as an industrial surface treatment facility is referred to as QM1. QM1 consists of a pulsed power modulator capable of the generation of 400 kV, 150 ns wide pulses delivering over 2 kJ/pulse and a repetitively pulsed ion diode which efficiently converts this power into an ion beam. The system is designed to operate at a sustained rate of 5 Hz. The control systems are industrial quality with touch screen input and automated control programming. This paper will detail the results of using the QM1 system to provide surface treatment for industrial customers. The beam parameters and the expected lifetimes for both the modulator and the ion diode system will be presented.