U.S. Department of EnergyOffice of Scientific and Technical Information
Collaborative Research: Fundamental Studies of Plasma Control Using Surface Embedded Electronic Devices
Abstract
The research program was collaborative between the researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Texas at Austin. The primary subject of this program was to investigate the possibility of active control of secondary electron emission (SEE) from surfaces in contact with plasmas and thereby actively control plasmas. Very few studies of ion-induced electron emission (IIEE) from semiconductors exist, and those that do exist primarily used high-energy ion beams in the experiments. Furthermore, those few studies took extreme measures to ensure that the measurements were performed on atomically clean surfaces because of the surface sensitivity of the IIEE process. Even a small exposure to air can change the IIEE yield significantly. In addition, much of the existing data for IIEE from semiconductors was obtained in the 1950s and ‘60s, when semiconductor materials were first being refined. As a result, nearly all of that data is for p-type Ge and Si. Before this investigation, experimental data on n-type materials was virtually non-existent. While the basic theory assumed that IIEE yields ought to be substantially independent of doping type and concentration, recent measurements of near atmospheric pressure plasmas and of breakdown suggested otherwise. These indirect measurements were mademore »
- Authors:
-
- Univ. of Texas, Dallas, TX (United States)
- Univ. of Texas, Austin, TX (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Univ. of Texas, Dallas, TX (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Fusion Energy Sciences (FES)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1330413
- Report Number(s):
- DOE-UTD-08308-1
9727300569; TRN: US1700441
- DOE Contract Number:
- SC0008308
- Resource Type:
- Technical Report
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; 70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY; 75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; SECONDARY EMISSION; P-TYPE CONDUCTORS; N-TYPE CONDUCTORS; SILICON; GERMANIUM; X-RAY PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY; DOPED MATERIALS; SURFACES; ELECTRON EMISSION; EXPERIMENTAL DATA; YIELDS; CONTROL; ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION; PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY; CONCENTRATION RATIO; ELECTRON DENSITY; SENSITIVITY; SPUTTERING; PLASMA; Ion Induced Electron Emission; Secondary Electron Emission; Microplasma
Citation Formats
Overzet, Lawrence J., and Raja, L. Collaborative Research: Fundamental Studies of Plasma Control Using Surface Embedded Electronic Devices. United States: N. p., 2015.
Web. doi:10.2172/1330413.
Overzet, Lawrence J., & Raja, L. Collaborative Research: Fundamental Studies of Plasma Control Using Surface Embedded Electronic Devices. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1330413
Overzet, Lawrence J., and Raja, L. 2015.
"Collaborative Research: Fundamental Studies of Plasma Control Using Surface Embedded Electronic Devices". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1330413. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1330413.
@article{osti_1330413,
title = {Collaborative Research: Fundamental Studies of Plasma Control Using Surface Embedded Electronic Devices},
author = {Overzet, Lawrence J. and Raja, L.},
abstractNote = {The research program was collaborative between the researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Texas at Austin. The primary subject of this program was to investigate the possibility of active control of secondary electron emission (SEE) from surfaces in contact with plasmas and thereby actively control plasmas. Very few studies of ion-induced electron emission (IIEE) from semiconductors exist, and those that do exist primarily used high-energy ion beams in the experiments. Furthermore, those few studies took extreme measures to ensure that the measurements were performed on atomically clean surfaces because of the surface sensitivity of the IIEE process. Even a small exposure to air can change the IIEE yield significantly. In addition, much of the existing data for IIEE from semiconductors was obtained in the 1950s and ‘60s, when semiconductor materials were first being refined. As a result, nearly all of that data is for p-type Ge and Si. Before this investigation, experimental data on n-type materials was virtually non-existent. While the basic theory assumed that IIEE yields ought to be substantially independent of doping type and concentration, recent measurements of near atmospheric pressure plasmas and of breakdown suggested otherwise. These indirect measurements were made on surfaces that were not atomically clean and seemed to indicate that deep sub-surface changes to the bulk conduction band electron density could lead to substantial variations in the IIEE yield. Exactly in contradiction to the generally accepted theory. Insufficient direct data existed to settle the matter. We performed both experimental measurements and theoretical calculations of IIEE yields from both Si and Ge in order to help clarify whether or not conduction band electrons substantially change the IIEE yield. We used three wafers of each material to carry out the investigation: a heavily doped p-type, an intrinsic and a heavily doped n-type wafer. There was approximately a factor of 1015 difference in the conduction band electron densities of the p-type and n-type Si wafers and a factor of 1010 for Ge. We investigated semiconductor surfaces that were both chemically cleaned (not atomically clean) and sputter cleaned (much closer to atomically clean), since such measurements are more relevant to recent indirect measurements. In addition to IIEE measurements, X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopies (XPS and UPS) were utilized to better understand the results.},
doi = {10.2172/1330413},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1330413},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Sat Jun 06 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Sat Jun 06 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}