RF exciplex halogen source of UV radiation on an argon-xenon-chlorine mixture

An exciplex halogen source of UV radiation that is excited by an rf transverse discharge is studied experimentally. The active medium of the source is an Ar-Xe-Cl₂ mixture kept at a low pressure (100–1000 Pa), and its working spectral range is 220–450 nm. The radiation spectrum contains 235 nm XeCl(D-X), 257 nm Cl₂(D′-A′), 306 nm XeCl(B-X), 390 nm XeCl(C-A), and 430 nm XeCl(B-A) lines. The results of optimization of the UV power as a function of the pressure, Ar-Xe-Cl₂ mixture composition, and excitation power are reported.     

Spectroscopic investigation of the plasma of a high-current diffuse discharge in He/Ar/CF2Cl2(CCl4) mixtures

Survey emission spectra in the region of 190–600 nm and time and service-life characteristics of a transverse nanosecond discharge in He/Ar/CF₂Cl₂(CCl₄) mixtures at a pressure of 10–100 kPa are investigated. In the emission spectra, excited products of the decomposition of freons—C₂(A−X), CN(B−X), Cl ₂ ^* , C^*, Cl^*, and Cl^+*— and the emission of ArF at λ=193 nm are revealed. The emissions of Cl ₂ ^* at λ=258 nm and ArF at λ=193 nm were the most intense. The discharge in the He/Ar/CF₂Cl₂ mixture is a multiwave emission source with λ=258 nm Cl ₂ ^* 193 nm ArF, and probably, 175 nm Arcl. It is of interest for applications in UV-VUV-range pulse photometry. The duration of the emission on Cl ₂ ^* , ArF, ArI, ClI, and ClII transitions in the discharge in the Ar/CF₂Cl₂ mixture (P=10–20 kPa) was 200–300 nsec. With adding He and increasing pressure to 100 kPa the duration of the emission decreased by a factor of 1.5–2. The basic mechanisms of the formation of Cl₂, ArF, and CN(B) molecules in the transverse-discharge plasma are considered. Uzhgorod State University, 46, Pidgirna Str., Uzhgorod, 294000, Ukraine. Translated from Zhurnal. Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 66, No. 2, pp. 241–246, March–April, 1999.     

Multiwave electric-discharge radiator for the 175–258-nm region

The radiation spectra of plasma in the region of 130–350 nm and the intensities of the 175-nm ArCl, 193-nm ArF, and 258-nm Cl₂ bands produced in the transverse volume discharge on a mixture of Ar/CF₂Cl₂ = (1–15)/(0.008–0.150) kPa are investigated. The discharge is shown to be a multiwave source of UV-VUV radiation on transitions of ArCl, ArF, and Cl₂ molecules. The optimum content of Freon-12 molecules is 0.008–0.010 kPa and that of argon atoms 10–15 kPa. The ratio of the intensities of the ArCl (B-X) and ArF (B-X) bands is 10, which is approximately equal to the ratio of concentrations of [Cl⁻] and [F⁻] ions, which are formed in the reaction of dissociative electron attachment to CF₂Cl₂ molecules. The service life of a radiator with λ = 175 nm of ArCl on one mixture in a gas-static mode is not greater than 5·10³ pulses. Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 67, No. 3, pp. 407–408, May–June, 2000.     

Emission characteristics and parameters of a glow discharge in an argon-xenon-chlorine mixture

We present the results of a study of the emission characteristics of a low-pressure longitudinal glow discharge in an Ar-Xe-Cl₂ mixture (p = 0.5–6.0 kPa) and numerical modeling of its plasma parameters as a function of the parameter E/P. We optimized the average emission power of the discharge in the spectral range 160–310 nm as a function of the discharge current, the pressure and composition of the gas mixture. The plasma parameters were calculated for the optimal mixture (according to experimental data) and included obtaining the dependences of the electron transport and energy characteristics, the power losses per unit pressure in the discharge going toward elementary electron processes in the plasma, and also the ionization and attachment coefficients as a function of the parameter E/P. The results of numerical modeling of the glow discharge parameters allow us to provide a qualitative basis for the emission distribution in the spectrum of a plasma based on an Ar-Xe-Cl₂ mixture. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 75, No. 4, pp. 563–567, July–August, 2008.     

Optical characteristics of the plasma of a transverse volume discharge in Cl2 and He/Cl2 mixtures

Results are presented from a study of UV and VUV emission from the plasma of a transverse volume discharge in chlorine and a He/Cl₂ mixture. In the wavelength range Δλ=140–300 nm, the Cl₂(D′-A′) band with an edge at 258 nm and the Cl ₂ ^* band with edge at λ=195 nm are found to be dominant. It is shown that, in the pressure range [Cl₂]=0.1–2.0 kPa, the intensity of emission with λ≤195 nm is higher than the intensity of the Cl₂(D′-A′) band. At [Cl₂]≥2 kPa, emission in the 258-nm band is dominant.     

Emission properties of a pulsed-periodic barrier discharge initiated in helium-iodine and argon-iodine mixtures

The subject of investigation is the emission properties of a pulsed-periodic barrier discharge initiated by submicrosecond pulses (f = 40–1000 Hz) in He-I₂ and Ar-I₂ mixtures. The investigation is carried out in the spectral range 200–400 nm at a pressure of the working medium of 1–100 kPa and an iodine partial pressure of 130–200 Pa. The dependence of UV emission from the plasma of the barrier discharge at the 342 nm I₂(D′ → A′) band and the iodine atom spectral line at 206.2 nm on the argon and helium partial pressures, excitation pulses repetition rate, and charging voltage of the capacitor of a short high-voltage pulse modulator is optimized. The contribution of the 206.2 nm I* spectral line to the UV emission of the barrier discharge is estimated.     

Emission characteristics of a glow discharge plasma based on a mixture of helium with chlorine molecules

We present the results of a study of the emission characteristics of a longitudinal glow discharge based on a mixture of helium and chlorine. Study of the emission characteristics of the discharge showed that it emits most efficiently in the bands of the chlorine molecule with maxima at 200 nm and 258 nm in an He-Cl₂ mixture (P = 0.2–0.3 kPa). We present the optimization of the average emission power of a UV emitter as a function of the glow discharge parameters, the pressure, and the composition of the working gas mixture. Based on solution of the Boltzmann equation for the electron energy distribution function in a discharge based on the optimal mixture (according to experimental data), we calculated the power losses per unit pressure going toward elementary processes, the electron transport characteristics, the ionization and attachment coefficients as a function of the parameter E/P. The calculated parameters of the plasma for the UV emitter allowed us to provide a basis for the qualitative pattern of physicochemical processes in the studied plasma. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 75, No. 1, pp. 121–124, January–February, 2008.     

Short-wavelength emission characteristics of a longitudinal bromine vapor glow discharge in a quartz tube

The output emission characteristics are presented in the spectral range 150–350 nm for a longitudinal bromine vapor glow discharge in a quartz tube (inner diameter 1.4 cm, interelectrode distance 10 cm). Pressure of the working mixtures: P = 0.2–1.0 kPa. The emission spectrum of the lamp based on an He-Br₂ mixture consists of the 163.3 nm and 157.6 nm spectral lines of the bromine atom and a system of molecular bromine bands (170–300 nm). The total power of UV-VUV emission of the lamp based on an He-Br₂ mixture is 5 W max for efficiency <10%. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 74, No. 6, pp. 816–819, November–December, 2007.     

Influence of the iodine vapor pressure on the output characteristics of a UV low-pressure gas-discharge lamp

The influence of the iodine vapor pressure on the output characteristics of a UV lamp pumped by a longitudinal glow discharge is studied. The lamp is filled with a helium-iodine mixture to a pressure of 100–1500 Pa. In the spectral range 320–360 nm, the I₂(D′ → A′) band with a peak at 342 nm prevails, while in the bactericidal range, iodine atomic lines at 183.0 and 206.2 nm dominate. The power of the UV lamp is optimized according to the iodine vapor pressure and working mixture composition by numerical simulation.     

Optical characteristics of the steady-state plasma of a longitudinal discharge in a He/CFC-12 mixture

The emission from the plasma of a contracted longitudinal dc discharge in a He/CF₂Cl₂ mixture in the wavelength range 130–300 nm is investigated. It is shown that the discharge plasma emits within the range 150–260 nm. The emission consists mainly of the broad bands of Cl₂ molecules and single-charged chlorine ions. The pressure and composition of the working mixtures, the discharge current, and the time during which the emitter can operate on a single gas fill are optimized to attain the best characteristics of UV and VUV radiation. The results obtained are of interest for developing a steady-state source of VUV and UV radiation to be applied in microelectronics, photochemistry, and medicine.     

Subnormal glow discharge in a Xe/Cl2 mixture in a narrow discharge tube

Electrical and optical characteristics of a subnormal glow discharge in a short (L=10 cm) discharge tube with an inner diameter of 5 mm are investigated. The dependences of the discharge current-voltage characteristic, the energy deposition in the discharge, the plasma spectral characteristics in the 130-to 350-nm wavelength range, the emission intensities of the XeCl(D-X) 236-nm and XeCl(B-X) 308-nm bands, and the total emission intensity in the range 180–340 nm on the pressure and composition of the Xe/Cl₂ mixture are studied. Two modes of glow discharge are shown to exist: the low-current mode at a discharge current of I _ch ≤2 mA and the high-current mode at I _ch >2 mA. The transition from one mode to another occurs in a stepwise manner. The increase in the chlorine content causes the discharge voltage and the energy deposition in the plasma to increase. At low pressures of the Xe/Cl₂ mixture (P≤0.7 kPa), stationary strata form in the cathode region. The lower the discharge current, the greater the volume occupied by the strata. This longitudinal discharge acts as a powerful source of continuous broadband emission in the range 180–340 nm, which forms due to overlapping the XeCl(D, B-X) and Cl ₂ ^* bands with edges at λ=236, 308, and 258 nm. The intensity of the 236-nm band is at most 20% of the total intensity of UV radiation. The maximum power of UV radiation (3 W at an efficiency of 8%) is attained at a xenon partial pressure of 250–320 Pa and a total pressure of the mixture of 2 kPa.     

Longitudinal rf discharge in Xe/Cl<Subscript>2</Subscript> mixtures

Results are presented from the studies of the electrical and emission characteristics of the low-temperature plasma of a longitudinal rf (f₀=1.76 MHz) discharge in Xe/Cl₂ mixtures at pressures of 100–800 Pa. The discharge was ignited in a cylindrical quartz tube with an inner diameter of 1.4 cm and interelectrode distance of 3.0 cm. The discharge emission within the spectral range of 190–670 nm is studied. The dynamics of the discharge current and discharge emission at different pressures and compositions of a Xe/Cl₂ mixture are investigated. It is shown that a discharge in a Xe/Cl₂ mixture acts as a wideband excimer-halogen lamp with a cylindrical output aperture emitting in the spectral range of 220–320 nm. The broad plasma emission spectrum is formed due to the overlap of the XeCl(D, B-X; B, C-A) bands that are broadened at low working-gas pressures. The composition of the working mixture is optimized to achieve the maximum power of the wideband UV plasma emission. Longitudinal rf discharges in low-pressure Xe/Cl₂ mixtures are of interest for developing small-size wideband (Δλ=220–450 nm) cylindrical-aperture lamps, whose efficiency can, on average, exceed the efficiency of conventional hydrogen lamps by more than one order of magnitude.     

Radiative characteristics and kinetics of processes in low-pressure gas-discharge lamps based on a mixture of helium and iodine vapors

The UV radiation of glow- and capacitive-discharge lamps based on mixtures of inert gases with iodine vapors are optimized in the spectral range of 175–360 nm, in which working helium-iodine mixtures of different compositions are used. The most intense spectral lines in the bactericidal region of the spectrum were the atomic lines of iodine (183.0, 206.2 nm), and in the region of 320–360 nm, emission of the spectral band of an iodine molecule prevailed with a maximum at λ = 342 nm. For a capacitive lamp with a casing opaque in the spectral range λ < 250 nm, the main part of the plasma emission power is concentrated in the A′-D′ band of an iodine molecule with a maximum at 342 nm. The emission brightness of this lamp is optimized in iodine molecule transitions depending on the partial helium pressure. We present the results of simulating the kinetics of processes in a glow-discharge plasma in mixtures of He, Xe, and iodine vapors. We establish the dependence of the main part of the emission intensity of the 206.2 nm spectral line of an iodine atom and the 342 nm band of an iodine molecule on the helium pressure in a glow-discharge lamp operating on a He-I₂ mixture.     

Emission of mercury monobromide exciplex in gas-discharge plasma based on mixture of mercury dibromide vapor with sulfur hexafluoride and helium

We present the results of investigations of an emission of a mercury monobromide exciplex in gas-discharge plasma of an atmospheric pressure barrier discharge based on a mixture of mercury dibromide vapor, sulfur hexafluoride, and helium. We optimized the emission power of mercury monobromide exciplexes with respect to the partial pressures of the working mixture. An average emission power of 0.42 W (λ_max = 502 nm) is achieved in a cylindrical emission source with a small working volume (0.8 cm³) at a pumping pulse repetition rate of 6 kHz. We determined electron energy distribution functions, transport characteristics, specific discharge power losses for electron processes, electron concentration and temperature, as well as rate constants of elastic and inelastic scattering of electrons by components of the working mixture in relation to the ratio of the field strength to the total concentration of components of the working mixture. We discuss processes that increase the population of the mercury monobromide exciplex. Gas-discharge plasma created in a mixture of mercury dibromide vapor with sulfur hexafluoride and helium can be used as a working medium of an emission source in the blue-green spectral range for the use in scientific research in biotechnology, photonics, and medicine, as well as for creating indicator gas-discharge panels.     

Emission of cyan upon excitation of nitrogen,air, and N<Subscript>2</Subscript>-CH<Subscript>4</Subscript> mixture by discharge pulses in an inhomogeneous electric field

We have studied spectral and amplitude-time characteristics of the emission by nitrogen, air, and the N₂-CH₄ mixture upon excitation by nanosecond and microsecond high-voltage discharge pulses in an inhomogeneous electric field in the pressure range of 0.01–3 atm. In the pulsed and pulse-periodic discharge regimes, we have observed emission bands of the violet system of cyan, the transition B ²Σ⁺ → X ²Σ⁺, which were comparable in intensity with bands of the (2⁺) system of nitrogen. We show that, in the pulsed regime, the highest intensity of the violet system of cyan is observed in the N₂-CH₄ mixture. We show that, in the pulse-periodic discharge in nitrogen with a small amount of a carbon-containing admixture, upon contracting the discharge, the efficiencies of formation and emission of the violet system of cyan considerably increase. We confirm that admixtures of oxygen to nitrogen lead to suppression of the emission of the violet system of cyan molecules.     

Emission characteristics of a gas-discharge plasma of water vapor in the vacuum UV region of the spectrum

We present the results of a study of emission from a low-density water vapor plasma in the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) region of the spectrum. The plasma was formed in a longitudinal glow discharge. We have studied the spectral characteristics of the plasma and also the dependences of the relative energy characteristics of the hydroxyl (OH) emission band on the discharge current and the helium partial pressure in a He-H₂O mixture in the spectral range 130–190 nm. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 73, No. 6, pp. 831–833, November–December, 2006.     

Repetitive low-pressure volume discharge induced by attachment instability in an Ar/Cl<Subscript>2</Subscript> mixture

Ignition conditions and the characteristics of a repetitive volume discharge with a spherical anode and plane cathode are investigated. The discharge was ignited in Ar/Cl₂ mixtures (P≤2.0 kPa) used in excimer halogen lamps operating on the ArCl (B-X) 175-nm, Cl₂(D′-A′) 257-nm, and Cl ₂ ^** 195-to 200-nm molecular bands. At an interelectrode distance of 3 cm and a dc anode voltage of U _ch ≤1 kV, a stable repetitive pulsed discharge with a repetition rate of 1–50 kHz was ignited in chlorine or (0.1–2.0)/(0.04–0.12)-kPa Ar/Cl₂ mixtures. The development of attachment instability in the discharge plasma, in which the processes of the formation, decay, and diffusion of the Cl ₂ ⁻ and Cl⁻ negative ions play an important role, leads to the formation of a solitary pearlike plasma domain with an average diameter of 0.2–3.5 cm.     

A multiwavelength low-pressure radiation source based on argon and xenon chlorides

The characteristics of an excimer radiation source pumped by a subnormal dc glow discharge in an Ar/Xe/Cl₂ mixture with the source operating in a spectral range of 160–310 nm were studied. The emission intensities of the 175, 236, 258, and 308 nm bands due to the transitions ArCl (B-X), XeCl (D-X), Cl₂ (D′-A′), and XeCl (B-X), respectively, were optimized in relation to the pressure, composition, and discharge current of the mixture.     

Ultraviolet radiation sources on (H2O,D2O) water vapor

Emission characteristics of ultraviolet (UV) radiation from water vapor (H₂O, D₂O, and a mixture of H₂O and D₂O vapors) excited by pulse-periodic discharges with open electrodes, as well as electrodes outside the discharge tube (capacitive discharge), are presented. Radiation is studied in a spectral range of 175–350 nm. The emission characteristics of a UV radiation source based on vapors of ordinary and “heavy” water, as well as the results of optimization of brightness of radiation bands from the OH and OD radicals as functions of pressure and the composition of the He-H₂O and He-D₂O mixtures, are reported.     

Ultraviolet gas-discharge lamp on iodine molecules

The emission characteristics of a pulsed-periodic UV radiation source are reported. The source excited by a pulsed-periodic capacitive discharge initiated in helium-iodine vapor, neon-iodine vapor, or krypton-iodine vapor mixtures radiates in the spectral range 200–450 nm. It is shown that most of the plasma radiation power concentrates in the integral line of the iodine atom (206.2 nm) and in the D′-A′ band of the iodine molecule with a maximum at 342 nm. The radiation intensity of the lamp is optimized in accordance with the partial pressure of the inert gases. The discharge plasma parameters that are of interest for simulating the process kinetics and the output characteristics of an UV source based on molecular iodine, atomic iodine, and xenon iodide are calculated in helium-iodine vapor and xenon-iodine vapor mixtures.