Berlin 2001 – scientific programme

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P: Plasmaphysik

P 12: Plasma Wall Interaction, Diagnostic and Low Temperature Discharges (Poster Session)

P 12.21: Poster

Friday, April 6, 2001, 12:30–15:00, AT2

Spectroscopic Investigations of High-Pressure Microhollow Cathode Discharges — •Isfried Petzenhauser¹, Uwe Ernst¹, Klaus Frank¹, and Werner Hartmann² — ¹Physikalisches Institut 1, Erwin-Rommel-Str.1, 91058 Erlangen — ²Siemens AG ZTEN3, Zentralabteilung Technik, Paul-Gossen-Str. 100, 91050 Erlangen

Stable d.c. microhollow cathode discharges have been operated in argon and nitrogen up to atmospheric pressure by reducing the diameter of the electrodes and the cathode opening to values on the order of 100 µm. The discharges have been operated d.c. and pulsed in a wide current range up to 30 mA at forward voltages around 200 V. Optical emission spectroscopy has been used in order to get more information on the plasma properties of the microhollow cathode discharge. The electron density was measured in pulsed and d.c. operation by stark broadening of the hydrogen balmer lines. Electron densities scales linearily with current at values around n_e=10¹⁵cm−3. Furthermore a mean electron temperature of around 1eV was measured comparing line intensities and the gas temperature was obtained using rotational-vibrational spectra of the second positive system of molecular nitrogen. This work was supported by DFG FR 1273 and Siemens AG ZTEN3, Erlangen, Germany