Decrease in the static electric gas breakdown voltage in the presence of free electrons in a discharge gap

The dependence of the gas breakdown voltage U _B on the anode-cathode spacing d, pressure p, and other gas characteristics in the presence of a steady external ionizer in the discharge gap was determined within the avalanche discharge theory. The case was considered where the spatial charge created by the external ionizer did not distort the electric field in the discharge gap. In the absence of external ionizer the obtained dependence comes down to the well-known expression for the gas breakdown voltage (the Paschen law).     

A gas-discharge ionizer for an argon ionization detector

The design of an ionizer for gas analyzers using the gas discharge instead of a radioactive source is considered. A high-frequency discharge between isolated electrodes is used as an ionizer in an argon ionization detector for gas chromatography. It is shown that the replacement of a radioactive source by the gas discharge improves the detector performance. An analytical model for the argon ionization detector is proposed. Model results are in good agreement with experiment.     

Efficient charge neutralization with an ac corona ionizer

This paper discusses the problem of obtaining effective charge neutralization by an ac corona ionizer with airflow. The motion of ions and the neutralization of a charged object for different discharge frequencies and airflow velocities are investigated by a computer fluid model for positive and negative ions. The results of the investigation show that, in the region of ion transport, the quasi-neutralized charge distribution self-generated by positive and negative ions during charge neutralization can effectively transport the ions themselves from an ionizer to a charged object and significantly reduce both the unwanted fluctuation and dc offset in the potential of the object at a steady state, resulting in efficient and precise charge neutralization. Since the quasi-neutralization greatly depends on the relationship between the discharge frequency and airflow velocity, the control of the relationship may lead to better neutralization with an air-blowing ac ionizer.     

Precisely balanced ionizer using atmospheric pressure glow discharge in air

Ion balance of an ionizer previously developed has been improved, using an atmospheric pressure glow discharge in air as a bipolar ion source. Although the glow ionizer itself has had good performance in ion balance, further we have investigated the possibility of precise control of the ion balance by controlling the discharge itself or the ion flow from the discharge to the object to be neutralized. To control the discharge, we have adjusted the voltage waveform to produce the glow discharge: a dc bias voltage superimposed on a sinusoidal waveform or widths of positive and negative rectangular pulses. Also an adjustable potential of a grid electrode additionally arranged has been employed to control the ion flow. By controlling any of them, we have succeeded in precisely controlling the ion balance of the glow ionizer.     

Effect of needle cone angle and air flow rate on electrostatic discharge characteristics of a corona-needle ionizer

In this study, the corona-needle ionizer was designed, constructed, and characterized. Experimental characterizations of the electrostatic discharge in terms of current–voltage relationships of the corona ionizer, including the effects of discharge electrode cone angle and air flow rate were presented. It was found that the charging current and ion concentration in the charging zone increased monotonically with corona voltage. Conversely, discharge currents decreased with increasing angle of the needle cone. The negative corona was found to have higher current than the positive corona. At higher air flow rates, the ion current and concentration were found to be relatively high for the same corona voltage. The effect of air flow rate was more pronounced than the corona voltage. It was also shown that the ion penetration through the ionizer decreased with increasing corona voltage, and increased with increasing air flow rate. The highest ion penetration through the ionizer of the 10° needle cone angle was found to be about 93.7 and 7.7% for positive and negative coronas, respectively. The highest ion penetration for the needle cone angle of 20° was found to be 96.6 and 6.1% for positive and negative coronas, respectively.     

Magnetron source of accelerated plasma flow

A new source of an accelerated plasma flow intended for depositing high-quality coatings is described. In this source, a magnetron discharge for cathode target sputtering is combined with a high-voltage discharge with longitudinal oscillation of electrons for ionization of the accrued vapor in which the plasma density is distributed uniformly owing to the application of three-phase ionizer.     

A Stability Analysis of an Electrostatic Precipitator Ionizer

An original study of wire oscillation in the ionizer unit of an electrostatic precipitator was made. The ionizer unit was modeled into a theoretical block diagram system, from which stability criteria were derived. Experimental measurements of the system parameters were devised. A comparison of an experimental single wire, double plate model and the theoretical system model resulted in close agreement.     

Characteristics of VUV ionizer in a vacuum chamber of flat panel displays

Flat panel displays are often exposed to the electrostatic damage during various panel manufacturing processes. In this paper, we report the electrostatic discharge failure in a unique process condition of OLED display process during which the substrate of OLED display is turned over while in the vacuum chucking condition. In order to solve this failure, we adopted newly developed technology of VUV (Vacuum Ultraviolet) radiation to neutralize the electrostatic electricity. This technology generates ions and electrons by ionizing residual molecules in vacuum chamber such that it enables the charged substrates to be neutralized in the chamber. While this new neutralization method is certainly effective in high vacuum process, the lifetime and performance of the VUV ionizer are not validated. To understand the lifetime and performance of VUV ionizer, we conducted the experiments in the vacuum chamber of an 8th generation display facility with various operating time of UV lamp. We analyzed the characteristic of VUV lamp and suggested the neutralization mechanism of VUV ionizer in a low pressure. Based on the experiments, this new neutralization method performs well under the high vacuum environment and is able to completely reduce the electrostatic potential down to 0 V within a short time.     

A novel ion monitoring device

A new design for an ion monitoring device is proposed. This ion monitor is capable of simultaneous measurement of positive and negative ion currents resulting from the presence of airborne ions (as created by an air ionizer, for example). Information acquired in this way can be used in real-time monitoring of ionizer. Ion balance and production rate of ions of both polarities can be recorded by the new ion monitor, regardless of the type of the ionizer. Robustness and feasibility of the newly developed instrument were verified against the standard charged plate monitor unit (ANSI ESD STM 3.1-2000: EOS/ESD Association Standard for Protection of Electronic Discharge Susceptible Items—Ionization, ESD Association, 2000). The ion monitor significantly shortens the time necessary to evaluate an ionizer, and may additionally provide a feedback signal needed to keep an ionizer unit in balance.     

Study of dielectric corona pre-ionization in hybrid TEA lasers

In this paper a theoretical analysis of single mode hybrid CO₂ lasers is studied that to describe the process of the dynamic emission in this lasers types and based on the Landau – Teller six-temperature model for the CO₂-N₂-He-CO system. The main discharge region is considered as a time dependent nonlinear RLC circuit. The electric circuit equations (including the ionization rate equations), the equations of laser (including stored energy density in CO₂ modes) and equations of laser intensities are coupled and solved numerically. Then the effects of the ionizer dielectric parameters on the output laser intensity are obtained. Application of this model gives more output energy than that have obtained by the previous works.     

Ion imbalances on an ionizer-controlled work surface

This paper presents results of investigations carried out to test the influence of charged objects introduced into the vicinity of an ionizer-controlled work surface. The qualitative and quantitative distribution of ions on the ionizer-controlled surface was the main focus of the experiment. Tests were conducted using an ionizer equipped with a feedback control signal loop from a sensor at the output of the ionizer (factory installed internal feedback).     

HOPF‐Bifurcations,Global Coupling and Hysteresis in dc‐Driven Oxygen Discharges

Starting from a hydrodynamic model to describe the positive column of a glow discharge in oxygen, we investigate the stability of the homogeneous state. Near the critical points of the instability curve the wave dynamics are approximated by an amplitude equation of the Ginzburg‐Landau type with complex coefficients and an additional integral term. The nonlocal coupling term describes the influence of the external circuit on the plasma properties. The complex coefficients are calculated for selected values of the plasma parameters. For sufficiently large values of the external resistor a subcritical Hopf ‐bifurcation is found. This is in agreement with the observation that in oxygen discharges a strong hysteresis occurs at the transition from the H ‐mode to the T ‐mode. Moreover, a numerical approach is used to study the hysteresis as a transition phenomenon (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Efficiency of ionizers in removing airborne particles in indoor environments

Air ionizers are increasingly being used to clean indoor environments of particle pollution. We tested the efficiency of a small negative ion generator (Aironic AH-202) in removing ultrafine particles from indoor environments. A high-flow air filter fitted with a HEPA filter was used to compare the removal efficiencies. We estimated the percentage of particles removed when the ionizer was operated within a closed chamber of volume 1 m³, in a closed unventilated room of volume 20 m³ and in three force-ventilated rooms of volume 32, 45 and 132 m³. The closed chamber studies were conducted with ambient particles and with smoke at particle number concentrations of 5 × 10³ and 7 × 10⁴ cm⁻³, respectively. In both cases, 70% of the particles were removed by the ionizer in 15 min. In general, the particle removal efficiency of both the ionizer and the air filter decreased as the room size increased. Both devices were also more effective in unventilated rooms than in ventilated rooms. The most important finding in this study was that, while the air filter was more effective than the ionizer in the two small rooms, the ionizer was clearly more effective than the air filter in the three largest rooms. We conclude that air ionizers are more suited than high-flow air filters in removing ultrafine particles from rooms larger than about 25 m³. The investigation also showed that small ions produced by the ionizer, placed in one room, were carried through the air conditioning system into other rooms, effectively removing particles from the air in these rooms in the process.     

Some properties of ion and cluster plasma

The aggregate of problems connected with the physics of ion and cluster plasma is qualitatively considered. Such a plasma can exist when a dense gas is ionized by a hard ionizer. The conditions for the formation of an ion plasma and the difference between its characteristics and those of an ordinary electron plasma are discussed; a solvated-ion model and the distribution of the clusters with respect to the number of solvated molecules are considered. The recombination rate of the positively and negatively charged clusters is roughly estimated. The parameters of a ball-lightning plasma are estimated on the basis of the cluster model.Translated from Trudy Fizicheskogo Instituta im. P. M. Lebedeva, Vol. 120, pp. 50–64, 1980.     

Double ionization of atoms by multiply charged ions and a strong electromagnetic field: Effects of correlation in the continuum

A nonstationary theory of double ionization of two-electron atoms in collisions with multiply charged ions or by an intense electromagnetic field is developed. An approach that permits investigating both problems by a single method is formulated. A two-electron continuum wave function that takes into account the interaction of the electrons with the atomic nucleus and the external ionizer as well as with one another is obtained as a product of Coulomb waves with modified Sommerfeld parameters. The computational results obtained for the double ionization of helium atoms by multiply charged ions are in good quantitative agreement with the existing experimental data. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 66, No. 1, 23–26 (10 July 1997)     

Nanoparticle Formation Mechanism in CVD Reactor with Ionization of Source Vapor

A new chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method, called ionization CVD, was developed, to produce non-agglomerated nanoparticles in which reactant gases are charged. A sonic-jet corona discharger was used as an ionizer in the developed nanoparticle generator. For a tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS)/O₂ chemical system, SiO₂ nanoparticles were prepared. All particles formed by the ionization CVD were charged unipolarly. SEM micrographs of particles showed that the repulsive Coulombic force between charged particles reduces their coagulation rate and produces non-agglomerated nanoparticles that have a relatively high number concentration and small size. An external field was used to collect the charged particles onto Si wafers. These collected samples indicated that the deposition of charged particles could be controlled by the external electric field. Particle concentration measurement with a condensation nucleus counter at various TEOS concentrations suggested the particle formation mechanism in the ionization CVD was an ion-induced nucleation.     

Aerosol Charge Neutralization by a Radioactive Alpha Source

The performance of a Po-210 radioactive ionizer for aerosol charge neutralization and bipolar charging has been evaluated. Monodisperse neutral and singly charged aerosols have been passed through the ionizer and their approach to the steady-state Boltzmann charge measured by measuring the fraction of particles that are electrically charged. The result shows that an Nt of approximately 2.5 × 10⁵ cm^?3 s is needed for the development of a steady-state charge fraction equal to that given by the Boltzmann' s law where N is the ion concentration and t is the residence time of the aerosol in the neutralizer. In addition, the performance of the ionizer for particle charge neutralization in a vibrating-orifice aerosol generator has been evaluated and the result shows that the source is less effective for this application and the residual charge on the particles is considerably higher than that given by the Boltzmann's law.     

Numerical and experimental studies of collection efficiency of an ion electrostatic collector for a mini-volume electrical PM detector

The experimental efficiency was numerically and experimentally studied for collecting negative and positive ions in a coaxial cylindrical electrostatic collector for a mini-volume electrical PM detector. The commercial computational fluid dynamics software package COMSOL Multiphysics™ was used to predict the behaviors of the flow and electric fields as well as the particle trajectories in the collecting zone of the ion collector. In the experiment, the ions were generated by a corona-needle ionizer with concentrations greater than 10¹³ ions/m³, the positively and negatively applied voltages at the inner electrode ranged from 0 to 45 V and the ion flow rates ranged from 1 to 5 L/min. For these ion flow rates, 1–5 L/min, the ion precipitates due to space charge and diffusion effects ranged from 92 to 97 % for positive ions and 91–97 % for negative ions. The total collection efficiency of the collector increased to 100% at collection voltages larger than 5, 20 and 40 V respectively for the ion flow rates of 1, 3 and 5 L/min for both positive and negative ions. Numerical calculation results of the ion trajectory in the collecting zone of the collector; showed good agreement with the experimental results of the total collection efficiency and can be used to support the bettering of designing in order to refine an ion collector after the charger or ionizer in a mini-volume electrical aerosol detector. Finally, this shows that this ion collector was proven to be particularly useful as an electrostatic collector for positive and negative ions after the charger or ionizer in a mini-volume electrical aerosol detector.     

Discharge Development in ac Plasma Displays

The discharge development in ac plasma displays is quantitatively assessed on the basis of comparatively great data quantities under well defined parameter conditions by means of computer controlled equipment. Investigated are ac plasma displays of three different sizes: PAF 58, 90 and PAF 128. The development of an individual discharge in a stationary pulse sequence is described by analyzing the light emitted by the discharge and by comparing the data obtained with theoretical calculations. Essential characteristics of the pulsed light emission of an ac plasma display discharge are the build-up time t_A, i.e. the period from cell voltage switch-on to the discharge maximum, and the characteristic time τ, which is the time constant describing the exponential growth of the discharge in its amplification range. The theoretical model shows the transition, during discharge build up, from directionization of neon atoms, mainly at low τ values, to ionization essentially via the Penning effect at high τ values. Therefore the effective Townsend ionization coefficient is dependent on τ. The measured time constants of the discharge build up are in good agreement with the calculated values. Adaption between measurement and calculation is achieved by variation of the secondary emission coefficient γ of the cathode.     

Modelling of a Spherical Electric Discharge at Atmospheric Pressure Under Higher Modes of Incident Microwaves

We present a spherical microwave discharge model, which takes into account the higher modes of the incident electromagnetic waves. The discharge model is constructed on the basis of the channel approximation of the LTE plasma. Numerical experiments are carried out for the discharge in an argon at atmospheric pressure. Results are presented for the characteristics of the discharge plasma against the external parameters (the size of the discharge chamber and the applied electromagnetic field mode, power and frequency). (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)