The Elusive Plasma:

A Journey to the Plasma

Wonderland

Nebula M1-67, a massive stellar wind -NASA

Ali E. Abdou
Associate Professor
American University of the Middle East AUM
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are Everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are Everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
 Plasma History
In 1924 the concept of
electron temperature and
the method of local
measurement of
temperature and density of
electron in gas discharge
with electrostatic probe
(Langmuir Probe)
The use of the term
Irving Langmuir
1881 1957 PLASMA () for
Nobel Prize in Chemistry an ionized gas was first
1932 coined in 1927 byIrving
Langmuir(1881-1957), an
American scientist.
The term was borrowed
from the blood Plasma
 Plasma History
Firstly, the development of
radio broadcasting led to the
discovery of the
Earth'sionosphere, a layer
of partially ionized gas in the
upper atmosphere which
reflects radio waves, and is
responsible for the fact that
radio signals can be received
when the transmitter is over
the horizon.
 Plasma History
Astrophysicists
quickly recognized
that much of the
Universe consists of
plasma, and, thus,
that a better
understanding of
astrophysical
phenomena requires
a better grasp of
plasma physics.
Plasma History
The pioneer in this field was
Hannes Alfvn (Nobel Prize
1970), who around 1940
developed the theory
ofmagnetohydrodyamics, or
MHD, in which plasma is
treated essentially as a
conducting fluid. This theory
has been both widely and
successfully employed to
investigate sunspots, solar
Hannes Alfvn
flares, the1908solar wind, star
1995
Nobel Prize in Physics 1970
formation, and a host of other
 Plasma History
Thirdly, the
creation of the
hydrogen bomb in
1952 generated a
great deal of
interest
incontrolled
thermonuclear
fusionas a
possible power
source for the
future. At first, this
research was
carried out
 Plasma History
However, in 1958
thermonuclear fusion
research was
declassified, leading
to the publication of a
number of immensely
important and
influential papers in
the late 1950's and
the early 1960's.
Broadly speaking,
theoretical plasma
physics first emerged
 Plasma History
James A.Van Allen's
discovery in 1958 of the
Van Allen radiation belts
surrounding the Earth,
using data transmitted
by the U.S. Explorer
satellite, marked the James Van Allen
1914 206
start of the systematic National Medal of Science
exploration of the Earth's 1987
magnetosphere via
satellite, and opened up
the field ofspace plasma
physics.
 Plasma History
Space scientists
borrowed the theory of
plasma trapping by a
magnetic field from
fusion research, the
theory of plasma
waves from
ionospheric physics,
and the notion of
magnetic reconnection
as a mechanism for
Magnetic reconnection is a physical process in
energy
highly release
conducting plasmas in which theand
magnetic
topology is rearranged and magnetic energy is
particle
converted acceleration
to kinetic energy, thermal energy, and
particle acceleration.Wikipedia
from astrophysics.
 Plasma History
The development of
high powered lasers in
the 1960's opened up
the field oflaser plasma
physics. When a high
powered laser beam
strikes a solid target,
material is immediately
ablated, and a plasma
forms at the boundary
between the beam and
the target. Laser
plasmas tend to have
fairly extreme
 Plasma History
A major application of
laser plasma physics
is the approach to
fusion energy known
asinertial
confinement fusion.
In this approach,
tightly focused laser
beams are used to
implode a small solid
target until the
densities and
temperatures
characteristic of
 Plasma History

Another interesting application

of laser plasma physics is the use
of the extremely strong electric
fields generated when a high
intensity laser pulse passes
A laser pulse through a capillary filled with
hydrogenplasmacreates a wake that can
through a plasma to accelerate
accelerate an electron beam to a billion electron
volts in just 3.3 centimeters. The same LOASIS particles. High-energy physicists
accelerating structure has been modified to tune
stable, high-quality beams from 100 to 400
million electron volts.
hope to use plasma acceleration
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are Everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
 Plasma, the Fourth State of Matter

A plasma is a quasi-neutral gas of charged and neutral particles which exhibit collective
behavior. 99% of the visible matter (!) is in the plasma state
Frances Chen, Introduction to Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
 Plasma Parameters
Degree of ionization

Quasi-Neutrality

Debye Shielding , , L>>

Number of particles in Debye sphere >>1

Electron Plasma Frequency

Ion Plasma Frequency

For
 Degree of Ionization
Degree of ionization

The degree of ionization in plasmas observed

in nature and laboratory varies over a wide
range between 10-8 and 1.

Partially or weakly ionized plasmas: << 1

(<<, ~ / = 10-4 10-6)
Fully or ionized plasmas: ~ 1
 Debye Shielding
Debye Shielding D

Cold Ions

: Electric Permittivity
8.85 1012F/m
: Boltzmann Constant
1.38x10-23 J/K
: Electron Temperature
K
 Quasi-Neutrality
Debye Potential:

Electrons in Debye sphere:

>> 1 Ideal Plasma

>> 1 Non-Ideal Plasma

Quasi-neutrality (L > D)
Collective behavior

Electrostatic Force per particle

Volume

Total Force =
 Plasma Frequency
Electron Plasma Frequency:

Ion Plasma Frequency

For

Electrons follow easily the RF cycle than ions

 Ideal vs. Nonideal Plasma
Ideal Plasma: Thermal
energy must
be larger than the
Coulomb energy

Nonideal Plasma: Thermal

energy must be smaller
than the Coulomb energy

Coulomb energy
Ideal vs. Nonideal Plasma
Plasma Temperature
E=
KT
Thermal vs. Non-Thermal
Plasma Sheath
Ion Velocity in the Plasma
Sheath
 Importance of Plasma
Sheath in Semiconductor
Nanofabrication
 Comparison of plasma and gas phases

Plasma is often called the fourth state of

matter. It is distinct from other lower-
energy states of matter; most commonly
solid, liquid, and gas. Although it is
closely related to the gas phase in that it
also has no definite form or volume, it
differs in a number of ways, including the
following:
Comparison of plasma and gas phases
 Various
Plasma
Description
Single Particle Description
Single Particle Description
Kinetic Description
Fluid Description
Fluid Description
Fluid Description
Fluid Description
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
 Plasma
Classificati
ons
Plasmas Can be Classified Based On
Various Parameters (Density,
Temperature, etc.)
 Plasma Classification (Temperature Based)

Low Temperature High

T ~ few eV Temperature
T ~ KeV
Very low ionization Fully ionized
(mostly neutrals) (ions & electrons)

Industrial use Fuel for nuclear fusion

Corrosives, fluorocarbons H2, D, T

& inert gases Non reactive
gases

Confinement not critical Special confinement is needed

 Plasmas are Everywhere
Plasmas can be found in the interior of the
stars, in the interstellar space and in the
core of the planets
Plasmas also occur in Natural gas
discharge phenomena on earth.
Low temperature plasmas in
laboratory/applications, e.g.
Incoherent/coherent plasma light sources
(fluorescence lamps, arc lamps, gas
lasers)
Reactive plasmas for surface processing
(chemical surface modification, etching,
deposition)
Temperature)
Plasma Diversity (Density vs.
Temperature)
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
Plasmas in the Universe
Natural Plasmas on Earth
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
 Low Temperature Plasma
Low temperature plasmas
Low-temperature plasmas are an
important tool in many
fields of industry.
Most important: Semiconductor industry.
Plasma technology is a demanding,
complex and highly
application-oriented field which needs
fundamental knowledge of plasma
processes and plasma surface interaction.
In many cases the development in the field
is driven by
empiricism and technological progress
through trial and error.
 Low Temperature Plasma

The situation is further complicated due

to the fact that
reactive plasmas represent a cross-
disciplinary field which requires
knowledge in a wide variety of fields in:
Physics,
Chemistry, and
Materials sciences.
But above all, reactive plasmas represent
a field with a
fascinating variety of well-established
processes and novel potential
applications.
Low Temperature Plasma in Our Daily Life
The World of Low Temp Plasma
Etchinganddeposition
Classification of Electric Gas Discharge
Typical operation parameters of
low-pressure plasmas
Low Pressure Plasma Surface Processing
Plasma Surface Interaction
Plasma Diversity (Multi-Scale)
Multi-species plasmas Multi-scale physics
Plasma Etching
Plasma Processing in Industry
Plasma in Health Care Industry
Plasma Processing in Automotive
Industry
Plasma and the Environment
 Outline
Plasma History
Basic Plasma Physics
Plasmas are everywhere
Plasma in Universe
Low Temperature Plasma
High Temperature Plasmas for
Nuclear Fusion
Plasma for Energy Production
Fission and Fusion Can Yield
Energy
Several Nuclear Fusion
Reactions
 You Have to Overcome the Coulomb
Barrier to Accomplish Nuclear Fusion
Several Ways to Reach to Fusion
Conditions All Include Plasma
Several Approaches to Realize Fusion

Magnetic Confinement Fusion

(MCF)
Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF)
 Magnetic Confinement Fusion
(MCF)
Magnetic confinement fusion is
an approach to generating fusion
power that uses magnetic fields
to confine the hot fusion fuel in
the form of a plasma.

Magnetic confinement fusion

attempts to create the conditions
needed for fusion energy
production by using the
electrical conductivity of the
plasma to contain it with
magnetic fields. The basic
concept can be thought of in a
fluid picture as a balance
between magnetic pressure and
Plasma Equilibrium
 Lawson Criteria

The Lawson criterion, first

derived on fusion reactors by
John D. Lawson in 1955 and
published in 1957, is an
important general measure of a
system that defines the
conditions needed for a fusion
reactor to reach ignition, that is,
that the heating of the plasma
by the products of the fusion
reactions is sufficient to
maintain the temperature of the
plasma against all losses
without external power input.
As originally formulated the
Lawson criterion gives a
minimum required value for the
product of the plasma (electron)
Everybody is Running Experiment in
MCF
Tokamaks
Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) 10 MW
Fusion Power. First to Approach
Breakeven, Q=1

Q= is the fusion energy gain factor ; ratio of fusion power produced to

power required to maintain the plasma
Joint European Torus (JET) is currently
Worlds Largest Tokamak - 16 MW
We are ready for the next step -
ITER
 ITER
1st Integrated Fusion Test Reactor
ITER Tokamak
Stellarators (W7-X)
Stellarators (W7-X)
Stellarators (LHD)
The Helically Symmetric
Stellarators (HSX)
 Other Fusion Devices

PF1000
Warsaw

Z-Machine Sandia
Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF)
Fusion Power Plant
Thank You for Your Attention