Mechanoresponsive smart windows have been intensively investigated in recent years as they offer various applications for signage and light management. However, integrating a display functionality into such smart windows remains a challenge since the realization of pixels in these devices is difficult. In addition, mechanoresponsive smart windows with a high dynamic range are rarely demonstrated because they would suffer from complex fabrication processes and high costs. In this work, a novel surface modification process and digital encoding were developed for direct inkjet printing of micro‐etching‐masks on hydrophobic elastomers, and a pixelated haze distribution was realized. Compared to the traditional mechanoresponsive smart windows, which modify the optical performance by applied strain solely, here, a smart window with haze tunability in either static or strain‐applied state is demonstrated. The work enhances the potential of the fabricated smart window to be applied in high dynamic range signage displays.

Inductive plasma discharge has been a part of continuous investigations since it was discovered. Especially the E- to H-mode transition and the hysteresis behavior have been topics of research in the last few decades. In this paper, we demonstrate a way to reduce the hysteresis behavior by the usage of a microwave ignition system. With this system, a significant decrease of the needed coil current for the ignition of the inductive driven plasma is realized. For the microwave generation, a magnetron as in a conventional microwave oven is used, which offers a relatively inexpensive way for microwave ignition aid. At the measured pressure of 7.5 Pa, it was possible to reduce the needed coil current for the inductive mode transition by a factor of 3.75 compared to the mode transition current without the ignition aid. This was achieved by initiating the transition by a few seconds of microwave coupling. The performed simulations suggested that the factor can be further increased at higher pressures. That is especially interesting for plasmas that are hard to ignite or for RF-sources that cannot deliver high enough currents or frequencies for the ignition.

Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) discharges are part of intense research. Predicting different plasma parameters, like the distribution and temperature of the present species, is of great interest for many applications. Iodine- or halide-containing plasmas in particular have an important function, for example, in the development of mercury-free UV radiation sources. Therefore, a 2D simulation model of a xenon- and iodine-containing ICP was created by using the Finite Element Method (FEM) software COMSOL Multiphysics®. The included species and the used reactions are presented in this paper. To verify the simulation in relation to the plasma distribution, the results were compared with measurements from literature. The temperature of the lamp vessel was measured in relation to the temperature distribution and also compared with the results of the simulation. It could be shown that the simulation reproduces the plasma distribution with a maximal deviation of ≈6.5% to the measured values and that the temperature distribution in the examined area can be predicted with deviations of up to ≈24% for long vessel dimensions and ≈3% for shorter dimensions. However, despite the deviating absolute values, the general plasma behaviour is reproduced by the simulation. The simulation thus offers a fast and cost-effective method to estimate an effective geometrical range of iodine-containing ICPs.

Inductively coupled plasma with an argon/hydrogen (Ar/H2) mixture is a potential solution to many surface treatment problems, especially when encountering carbon contamination in optical X-ray and extreme ultraviolet instruments. Removing carbon contamination on multilayer thin films with Ar/H2 plasma extends the lifetime of the above devices. To further investigate the reaction between plasma and carbon, both optical emission spectroscopy and finite element method with multiphysics fields were employed. The results demonstrated that the intensities of the Balmer lines were in good agreement with the densities of the radical hydrogen atoms from the simulation model, showing a dependence on the mixing ratio. At an electrical input power of 165 W and a total pressure of 5 Pa, an optimum mixing ratio of about 35 ± 5 % hydrogen produced the highest density of hydrogen radicals, coinciding with the highest carbon removal rate. This shows that the carbon removal with Ar/H2 plasma was mainly controlled by the density of hydrogen radicals, and the mixing ratio showed a significant impact on the removal rates.

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