Method and apparatus for confinement of ions in the presence of a neutral gas
The present invention is an apparatus and method for combining ions with a neutral gas and flowing the mixture with a radial flow component through a magnetic field so that the weakly ionized gas is confined by the neutral gas. When the weakly ionized gas is present in sufficient density, a weakly ionized non-neutral plasma is formed that may be trapped in accordance with the present invention. Applications for a weakly ionized non-neutral plasma exploit the trap`s ability to store and manipulate ionic species in the presence of neutral gas. The trap may be connected to a mass spectrometer thereby permitting species identification after a fixed period of time. Delicate and/or heavy particles such as clusters may be held and studied in a ``gentle`` environment. In addition, the trap can provide a relatively intense, low-energy source of a particular ion species for surface implantation or molecular chemistry. Finally, a long trap may permit spectroscopy of unprecedented accuracy to be performed on ionic species. 4 figs.
- Research Organization:
- Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- Assignee:
- Battelle Memorial Inst., Richland, WA (United States)
- Patent Number(s):
- US 5,931,986/A/
- Application Number:
- PAN: 8-696,221
- OSTI ID:
- 678616
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 3 Aug 1999
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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