Forces on dust particles in RF discharges
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
Particulate contaminants in rf sustained plasma processing reactors remain a significant problem. Laser scanning measurements have demonstrated that these dust particles migrate to well-defined regions of the discharge; the traps have characteristic, long-lived boundaries. The authors analyze in detail the various forces on the dust: electric, gravitational, neutral-dust drag, and ion-dust drag, including the effects of the size of the dust grains compared to their relative spacing and the Debye length. The dynamics of dust particles subject to these forces are investigated using one- and two-dimensional fluid discharges models to determine the steady state macroscopic parameters. The dust tends to reside at the edge of the sheath where the dominant electric and ion-dust drag forces balance, producing structures similar to those observed.
- OSTI ID:
- 67859
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9310400--
- Journal Information:
- Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Journal Name: Bulletin of the American Physical Society Journal Issue: 13 Vol. 38; ISSN BAPSA6; ISSN 0003-0503
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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