Numerical Simulation of Plasma Plume With an Insulated Wall in Sheath Region Using a DSMC‐PIC Parallel Algorithm

Abstract

The spatiotemporal evolution of plasma plumes is accompanied by various phenomena such as chemical reactions, sheath layer formation, and secondary electron emission, which have a crucial impact on the working characteristics and performance improvement of plasma devices. This study uses a direct simulation Monte Carlo/particle‐in‐cell (DSMC/PIC) parallel coupling algorithm for numerical simulations, with the PIC method using full particle simulations. The main focus of the study is to explore, through numerical simulations, the effects of the initial injection density, electron temperature, and charge exchange reactions. Two energy spectrum models are used for secondary electron emission, namely, the Furman model and the vertical model. The modified Mozorov coefficient model simulates two types of insulation wall materials: boron nitride and silicon carbide. The spatiotemporal evolution of H2, H, X, H2+, H+, and e in the flow field is demonstrated by simulating a double cylindrical axisymmetric calculation example. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the structural characteristics of number‐density cloud images under different initial conditions. Increasing the injection density enhances the radial electric field and results in a low‐density region of ion distributions. Furthermore, the electron temperature increases the deposition of wall charges. Lastly, the charge exchange reaction has a weak effect on the specific distribution of particles in the convection field.