Novel technique for the production of high-pressure air constituent plasmas

Summary form only given. We present a novel method of producing a high-density /spl sim/10/sup 12/-10/sup 14/ cm/sup -3/, large (500-2500 cc) volume, high-pressure air constituent plasmas. An organic gas, Tetrakis (dimethyl-amino) ethylene (TMAE), seeded in high-pressure air constituent gases is pre-ionized by a 193 nm excimer laser (300 mJ, 20(/spl plusmn/2) ns) and then sustained by the efficient absorption of the radio-frequency (rf) power (1-25 kW pulsed) through inductive coupling of the wave fields, thereby reducing the rf initiation power budget. A multi-turn helical antenna is used to couple rf power through an rf matching network to sustain the plasma. TMAE plasma density and decay recombination mechanisms with and without the background gas are examined using a 105 GHz interferometer. Optical emission spectroscopy is also employed to study the process of delayed ionization of the seed gas and rf creation of air constituent plasma and determine the plasma temperature. RF wave penetration and projection of plasma away from the source region are also examined for different gas flow rates.