Radio frequency-power and the ring-mode to red-mode transition in an inductively coupled plasma
- Physical Sciences Laboratories, The Aerospace Corporation, P.O. Box 92957, Los Angeles, California 90009 (United States)
The optical output of an alkali-metal inductively coupled plasma (alkali-ICP) plays an important role in both atomic magnetometers and atomic clocks, producing these devices' atomic signals through optical pumping. Unfortunately, though the alkali-ICP's optical pumping efficiency grows exponentially with temperature, at relatively high temperatures ({approx}140 deg. C) the discharge transitions from ''ring mode'' to ''red mode'', which is a spectral change in the plasma's output that corresponds broadly to a transition from ''good emission'' for optical pumping to ''poor emission.'' Recently, evidence has accumulated pointing to radiation trapping as the mechanism driving the ring-mode to red-mode transition, suggesting that the phenomenon is primarily linked to the alkali vapor's temperature. However, observations of the transition made in the 1960 s, demonstrating that the ICP temperature associated with the transition depended on rf-power, would appear to cast doubt on this mechanism. Here, we carefully investigate the influence of rf-power on the ring-mode to red-mode transition, finding that rf-power only affects the transition through discharge heating. Thus, the present work shows that the primary effect of rf-power on the ring-mode to red-mode transition can be understood in terms of the radiation trapping mechanism.
- OSTI ID:
- 22036865
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 111, Issue 8; Other Information: (c) 2012 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-8979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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