Greifswald 2024 – scientific programme

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P: Fachverband Plasmaphysik

P 21: Low Pressure Plasmas and their Application II

P 21.3: Talk

Thursday, February 29, 2024, 14:45–15:00, ELP 6: HS 3

Electron dynamics in partially magnetized low pressure plasma discharges — •Lukas Vogelhuber, Denis Eremin, Kevin Köhn, Dennis Krüger, and Ralf Peter Brinkmann — Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Science, Ruhr University Bochum, D-44780, Bochum, Germany

Partially magnetized plasma discharges in magnetron configurations are versatile and offer a wide range of applications in science and industry. These applications range from space propulsion systems that utilize Hall-effect thrusters to the deposition of thin films in the physical vapor deposition technology using "high power impulse magnetron sputtering" (HiPIMS). Their magnetic field configuration is described in cylindrical geometry (r, θ, z) with the magnetic field lines in the r-z plane. In such magnetron discharges, plasma non-uniformities are observable in the form of the rotating spokes phenomenon moving in the azimuthal (θ) direction. These structures exhibit a heightened ionization rate and increased potential, altering the electron dynamics in these regions and the overall plasma dynamics. The focus of this talk is the investigation of electron dynamics of partially magnetized electrons under the influence of a simplified but realistic axisymmetric magnetic field in the r-z plane. As a key diagnostic method serves the magnetic moment in higher-order approximations to understand the energization process of electrons under such conditions. Understanding the electron trajectories in these regions influenced by the spatially inhomogeneous magnetic field may contribute to future understanding of the adiabatic and non-adiabatic energy gain of electrons.

Keywords: Magnetron; Plasma; Elektronendynamik