Pressure dependence of plasma parameters in medium-vacuum nitrogenarc discharge with the titanium cathode

The plasma properties of a medium-vacuum nitrogen arc discharge from a titanium cathode were studied. The arc chamber use was 400 mm in diameter and 600 mm in length. The cathode diameter and thickness were 64 and 25 mm, respectively. The experimental conditions are given as follows: pressure range=1×10^-3~2×10^-1 torr; N₂ gas flow rate=6 ml/min; arc current=50 A. Electric probe characteristics are measured as a function of pressure and distance from the cathode surface. The analytical results obtained show that the electron energy distribution takes 1-Mx at pressures above 1×10^-2 torr but 2-Mx at pressures under 4×10^-2 torr and that the electron density has a maximum value at a certain pressure. The Ti⁺, Ti⁺⁺, and N ⁺₂ ion spectral intensities are measured as a function of pressure and distance from the cathode surface. On comparison of these results and the electron density, the Ti⁺ spectral intensity turns out to be proportional to that of the electron density. This suggests that the major ion in the plasma volume is of the Ti⁺ species     

Scenario for output pulse shortening in microwave generators drivenby relativistic electron beams

At the present time, microwave generators driven by high current relativistic electron beams are not baked and sealed, so their inner surfaces are densely covered with molecules of gas and oil. This allows the production of microwave pulses of 10^-8 s to 10^-7 s duration, but not longer. A microwave pulse termination scenario is speculated as follows: (1) Electrons oscillating in the strong RF field near the metallic surfaces multiply owing to the secondary emission (the multipactor effect); (2) the multipactor electron bombardment stimulates desorption of gas molecules from the metallic surfaces; (3) the gas undergoes avalanche RF breakdown; and (4) the resultant plasma stops microwave generation and, since electron-ion recombination is slow, does not allow the RF field to revive. At the gigawatt power level, the characteristic time of such a scenario is much shorter than that of the cathode and collector plasma expansion and electron beam instabilities. The energy output parameters of relativistic electron microwave generators can be (and usually are) improved at high pulse repetition rates. A more radical improvement is possible using the technology typical for high vacuum tubes, i.e., baking and sealing     

激光辐照固体靶产生等离子体反冲研究

提出一种通过诊断等离子体反冲动量来计算激光加载产生冲击压强的方法. 当强激光辐照固体靶表面时, 所产生的高速喷射的等离子体对靶具有反冲作用, 通过诊断等离子体反冲动量的变化可以计算激光辐照固体靶产生的冲击压强变化. 本文利用辐射流体力学软件研究了这种诊断方法, 模拟采用的激光功率密度为5×10¹²-5×10¹³ W/cm², 激光脉宽选取纳秒量级. 模拟结果表明该方法是有效且可行的.     

Atomic collision processes relevant for heavy ion beam probes

Atomic collision processes of fast Tl and Cs ions with particles in a high temperature fusion plasma are investigated. At low beam energies (<5 MeV), ion impact collisions and charge exchange processes can be neglected compared to electron ionization processes. At beam energies above 5 MeV and high plasma ion temperatures, collisions with ions start to contribute significantly to signal generation and attenuation. Also, collisions with the neutral background gas in the beamlines can attenuate the ion beam significantly and lower the signal level, if the vacuum pressure is above 10^-4 Torr. For the heavy ion beam probes operating today, only electron impact ionization processes are important and accurate predictions of the secondary signal level and electron density profile measurements are possible because of the good knowledge of electron impact ionization cross sections for Cs ⁺ and Tl⁺ ions     

Filippov type plasma focus as intense source of hard X-rays(Ex≃50 keV)

This paper evaluates the use of a plasma focus machine (Filippov type) as a pulsed intense source of hard X-rays. It is shown experimentally that discharging a capacitor bank of W=50 kJ in the new arrangement of the discharge parameters, one can deliver into the test cavity (volume of 6*10³ cm³) an average of Φ _x=8*10^-4 J/cm². The delivered energy fluence varies in the range of 2*10^-4 J/cm²⩽Φ_x⩽2.9*10^-3 J/cm², depending on the probe position. The X-ray energy spectra were established by the differential absorption method using thermo-luminescent detectors (time-integrated spectra) or plastic scintillators (time-resolved spectra). The average energy of X-ray photons is 40 keVx^av<50 keV (20 keV⩽E _x⩽170 keV) and remains quasi-constant during the main part of the pulse (~40 ns). The electron energy that can produce such bremsstrahlung radiation is in the range of 95 keV⩽E_e⩽170 keV. However, time-resolved experiments reveal that at each instant of time only one energy of electron beam occurs. The aforementioned radiation characteristics reveal new potentials for the plasma-focus machine for a variety of applications. Some insight into the physics behind production mechanism of quasi-monoenergetic relativistic-electron beams will be concurrently reviewed     

Characteristics of a vacuum spark triggered by the transient hollowcathode discharge electron beam

The discharge characteristics of a vacuum spark triggered by the transient hollow cathode discharge (THCD) electron beam is investigated over a wide variety of discharge conditions. Two systems of the vacuum spark device have been considered-the first system powered by eight 2700-pF doorknob capacitors charged to a voltage of 40 kV (input energy of 17.6 J); while the second system employs a single 1.85-μF Maxwell capacitor discharged at a voltage of 20 kV (input energy of 370 J). The operating pressure of these systems has been varied over the range of 10 ^-2 to 10^-5 mbar in order to examine the effect of the operating pressure on the plasma formation of the vacuum spark discharge. The effectiveness of plasma heating has been found to be significantly enhanced in the two vacuum spark systems studied here. In particular, the plasma of the 17.6 J system has been observed to be heated to a condition hot enough to emit in the X-ray region when the operating pressure is reduced from 10^-2 to 10^-5 mbar. Similarly, in the case of the 370 J system, hot spot formation is also observed to occur only at a low operating pressure of 10^-4 mbar     

A cold thermionically emitting dusty air plasma formed by radiativeheating of graphite particulates

Formation of an atmospheric pressure dusty air plasma is explored experimentally in this paper. The plasma is created by seeding an air flow with graphite particles and irradiating the particulates with a focused CO₂ laser beam. The graphite particles are, thus, heated to thermionically emitting temperatures, and average particle temperatures and average particle number densities are measured. The presence of charges is inferred both from these measured quantities using a simple theoretical transient model, and experimentally by applying a dc bias across the irradiated region. It is found that an electron density of ~6.7 × 10⁵ cm^-3 (6.7 × 10¹¹ m^-3) can be produced at steady state in the presence of O₂. This value can be increased to 3.6 × 10⁷ cm^-3 (3.6 × 10¹³ m ^-1) in the ideal case where an electron attachment to O₂ is suppressed and where a lower work function particulate is used     

Development of an intense pulsed metallic ion beam source

Intense pulse metallic ion beams (Al⁺, Cu⁺, and Pb⁺) were produced by a magnetically insulated ion diode having a metal anode. Metal ion plasmas on the anode could be generated through enhanced electron bombardment by using a radial cathode. The energy, current density, and duration time of the lead ion beam were 30~140 keV, ~7.5 A/cm² (total ion current ⩾0.5 kA), and 800 ns, respectively. The ion current density exceeded the space-charge-limited current by a factor of 50. The lead ions in the first-to-sixth states of ionization were detected by a Thomson-parabola ion-spectrometer together with light loss, such as C⁺ and O ⁺. The ratio of the ion current of heavy metals to the total ion current was measured using a magnetic mass analyzer with a charge collector. The ratio was about 90% for a lead ion beam and 20~50% for Al and Cu ion beams     

Current filamentation of strongly preionized high pressure glowdischarges in Ne/Xe/HCl mixtures

The formation of intense current filaments, destroying the homogeneity of the active laser volume, limits the energy extraction from XeCl-lasers. Using time-resolved spectrally integrated pictures, the morphology and temporal development of such filaments are studied. The time scale of this process is found to be controlled by HCl depletion. With strong preionization (n_e>10⁹/cm ³) and a fast (10 ns) rising discharge voltage applied at the end of the preionizing X-ray pulse, the filaments originate from hotspots formed in the cathode layer. The shot by shot statistics of spot formation on freshly prepared cathodes reveal that hotspots are not caused by streamers developing in the high field region of strongly reduced electron density built up by electron diffusion during formation of the cathode sheath. Unexpectedly, a large number of weak diffuse filaments are found in spotless discharges (current density 300 A/cm²; duration 200 ns), in spite of the strong preionization     

Spectroscopic investigation of a low current arc in pure fluorine

A pure fluorine 10-A DC arc has been operated in an Al₂O₃ tube of 18 mm diameter at atmospheric pressure. This arc was used to perform radially resolved spectroscopic end-on measurements in the visible and UV-spectral regions. An excitation temperature of 7800 K on the arc axis was determined from the intensity of atomic fluorine lines, and an ion density of 1.7×10 ²¹ m^-3 was determined from the half-width of the contamination line H_β. A Boltzmann plot of the affinity continuum in the UV-spectral region yields two groups of electrons. A group of hot electrons is characterized by a temperature that agrees with the excitation temperature, and a group of cold electrons has a temperature in accordance to the gas temperature of 4000 K. The absolute intensity of the affinity continuum gives and electron density of 1.3×10²⁰ m^-3 on the arc axis, which is lower than the density of both positive and negative ions in the discharge. From the difference between the electron and gas temperature, an elastic collision cross section between the electrons and F-atoms of 2×10^-20 m² is determined     

Pseudospark produced pulsed electron beam for material processing

An intense pulsed electron beam produced by a pseudospark discharge is used for material processing. The electron beam propagates in a self-focused manner in the background gas. Hardly 12 ns after the beginning of the discharge the fraction of space charge neutralization is about 96%. To sustain the neutralization effect high energy electrons (E <500 keV) are accelerated in radial direction at the beam head, due to strong electric field gradients. At current maximum the beam pinches due to its own magnetic field. At peak current of 400 A and charging voltage up to 16 kV power density reaches 10⁹ W/cm ² on the target surface. Some results of copper thin films are presented. Due to the high expansion velocity of 10⁴ m/s of the ablated target material a copper-matrix has been masked     

强场下的Li-like氖复合机制X光激光的数值模拟

论述了隧道电离和阈上电离加热过程。并把此二过程加到一个non-LTE平均原子模型,用此模型来研究强场下光致电离类锂氖复合机制X射线激光。计算结果表明,当驱动激光脉冲为100fs、波长为0.248μm、功率密度为2×10¹⁷Wcm^-2,氖气的密度为10^-3gcm^-3时,类锂氖精细结构跃迁3d_5/2→2p_3/2(λ=98Å)的最大增益系数约为100cm^-1,其维持时间约为1.5ps。     

High density electron-hole plasma in Si induced by femtosecond pulses

High electron and hole (e-h) densities of about 10²² cm^-3 have been produced in silicon, using 620 nm wavelength laser pulses of 100 fs duration. These density values are determined by measuring the dependence of the pulse self-reflectivity on its energy. By comparison with a fully non-linear model of light propagation, we show that dissipation processes inside the plasma are dominated by e-h collisions, with a characteristic time of 3 × 10^-16s. The onset of melting within 100 fs and its nature, considering the high plasma density, are also discussed in view of scattered light measurements.     

Observation of Raman forward scattering and electron accelerationin the relativistic regime

Raman forward scattering (RFS) is observed in the interaction of a high intensity (>10¹⁸ W/cm²) short pulse (<1 ps) laser with an underdense plasma (n_e~10¹⁹ cm ^-3). Electrons are trapped and accelerated up to 44 MeV by the high-amplitude plasma wave produced by RFS. The laser spectrum is strongly modulated by the interaction, showing sidebands at the plasma frequency. Furthermore, as the quiver velocity of the electrons in the high electric field of the laser beam becomes relativistic, various effects are observed which can be attributed to the variation of electron mass with laser intensity     

Electron-stimulated nitridation of Si(100) in pure ammonia

We present the results of an AES study of the Si(100) electron-stimulated nitridation at RT by ammonia gas. The influence of the gas pressure and electron beam density on the nitridation rate have been determined within the ranges 10⁻⁶–10⁻⁹ Torr and 5 × 10⁻³–5 × 10⁻² A/cm², respectively. The silicon nitride growth rate has been found to be proportional to the electron flux and is enhanced with increased ammonia pressure in the range 10⁻⁹–10⁻⁷ Torr. Beyond 10⁻⁷ Torr the Si nitride growth rate is constant and independent of ammonia pressure. A phenomenological model of electron-stimulated nitridation process is suggested, which is in good agreement with the experimental data. The rate of electron-stimulated nitridation has been deduced.     

双程放大740 mJ TEC冷却LD泵浦Nd:YAG激光器

报道了一种实现高能量输出的激光二极管（LD）泵浦无水冷全固态Nd：YAG双程放大器结构。整个放大系统采用了泵浦与晶体棒集成的模块以及半导体制冷器（TEC）,从而实现了激光系统的小型化。总腔长为730 mm。在10 Hz重复频率下,主振荡器得到了最大脉冲能量为350 mJ的激光输出。脉宽为9.7 ns,光束质量M²在两个方向分别为7.7和12.3。并进行了双程放大的研究,双程放大后得到了740 mJ、10 ns的激光输出。     

INVESTIGATION OF GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF MONOCRYSTALLINE C60 FILMS IN HELIUM GAS ENVIRONMENT

The growth characteristics of C₆₀ films were investigated in helium gas environment at pressures of 0, 2.667×10^-2 and 6.667×10^-2 Pa, respectively. X-ray diffraction results showed that perfectly (111) oriented monocrystalline C₆₀ films with large grains were successfully deposited on synthetic 1M phlogopite mica-fluorophlogopite (0Ol) plane at a substrate temperature of 160℃ when the helium gas pressure is 2.667×10^-2 Pa. The results indicated that under appropriate helium gas pressure, the energy change of C₆₀ molecules through collisions with helium atoms, and the decrease of the supersaturation of the vapor pressure in the vicinity of the substrate resulted in a quasi-thermodynamic equilibrium deposition system. As a result, well-structured monocrystalline C₆₀ films were deposited on (001) plane of the fluorophlogopite substrate.     

Optimization of InAs/GaAs quantum-dot structures and application to 1.3-μm mode-locked laser diodes

The self-assembled growth of InAs/GaAs quantum dots by molecular beam epitaxy is conducted by optimizing several growth parameters, using a one-step interruption method after island formation. The dependence of photoluminescence on areal quantum-dot density is systematically investigated as a function of InAs deposition, growth temperature and arsenic pressure. The results of this investigation along with time-resolved photoluminescence measurements show that the com- bination of a growth temperature of 490℃, with a deposition rate of 0.02 ML/s, under an arsenic pressure of 1×10^-6 Torr （1 Torr = 1.33322×10^2 Pa）, provides the best compromise between high density and the photoluminescence of quantum dot structure, with a radiative lifetime of 780 ps. The applicability of this 5-layer quantum dot structure to high-repetition-rate pulsed lasers is demonstrated with the fabrication and characterization of a monolithic InAs/GaAs quantum-dot passively mode-locked laser operating at nearly 1300 nm. Picosecond pulse generation is achieved from a two-section laser, with a 19.7-GHz repetition rate.     

Theoretical and experimental investigations on the process ofhigh-pressure discharge development

The voltage breakdown behavior of a plane-parallel gap of 0.48-mm length filled with helium was examined at atmospheric pressure with admixtures of dry air at relative pressures of 0, 10^-4, 3×10^-4, and 10^-3. The initial stages of the breakdown were investigated by means of a quantitative model consisting of the electron, ion, and excited-particle conservation equations and the Poisson equation. The system of equations was solved for an applied voltage of 180 V, at one single partial pressure of the impurities. Two numerical routines were used for the solution: a commercial IMSL subroutine TWODEPEP, and a newly developed method of solution in several fractional steps. The results were compared and found to be in reasonable agreement although the new method indicated a somewhat slower rate of rise, particularly concerning electron density. The new method permits extension of the calculation up to electron densities equal to almost two orders of magnitude above the earlier limit     

Nonlinear Optical Properties of Semiconductor-Doped Sol-Gel Waveguides

Thin silica-titania films doped with CdS and PbS nanocrystals have been prepared by the sol-gel route. Their nonlinear properties have been studied using the techniques of degenerated four-wave mixing and m-lines with picosecond (ps) and nanosecond laser pulses. Depending on wavelength, doping level, and laser pulse duration, high negative nonlinearity was found for CdS-doped (n₂ = -2 x 10^-8 cm² per kW) and PbS-doped films (-10^-10 to -2 x 10^-7 cm² per kW). The response time of the nonlinearity was below 35 ps. Saturation of the nonlinearity was observed. Straight, monomode channel waveguides have been fabricated on these films. The influence of MIE-scattering due to the nanoparticles is investigated.