Theory of the Hollow Cathode Glow Discharge

Abstract

A theory of the hollow cathode glow discharge based on the two-temperature electron model is developed. The following two interdependent mechanisms are consistently taken into account: the creation of ions and excited atoms due to electron collisions in the discharge and the emission of secondary electrons on the cathode surface due to ions and ultraviolet photons. Trapped electrons in the hollow are also considered. Numerical calculations are made for helium gas in a cylindrical hollow cathode whose inner diameter and length are 10 and 32 mm, respectively, on the basis of a onedimensional steady state model. Voltage-current relations are obtained at gas pressures of 0.13, 0.27 and 0.40 kPa. Population densities of 64 excited atomic levels are determined as a function of the radial distance r as well as the densities of the ions and electrons.

The use of hollow cathodes in deposition processes: A critical review

“…As we have seen earlier, the high electric field region, or cathode sheath, extends from close to the cathode surface into the negative glow [48]. Additionally, for the particular case of the hollow cathode, the description of the sheath is complicated by the fact that many of the theoretical models assume a Maxwellian or Druyvesteyn electron energy distribution and, as we will see later, this is not correct for typical operating conditions [23,118].…”

“…The conventional models consider that the mean free path of the high-energy electrons is sufficiently large that they are able to pass through the negative glow region, while causing a few ionization events, reach the opposing cathode sheath and be reflected back through the central region, causing additional ionization events during each pass (the pendulum effect) [30,118,130]. Many conventional models of hollow cathode discharges consider that; (a) the pendulum electrons participate in ionization reactions in the sheath close to the cathode and in this way generate secondary electrons which can be accelerated to…”

“…high energy [131], (b) there is enhanced electron emission from the cathode due to bombardment by photons and metastable atoms [23,31,118,[132][133][134].…”

A Study of the Motion of High-Energy Electrons in a Helium Hollow Cathode Discharge

“…The properties of (cold cathode) hollow cathode (HC) glow discharges have been examined for a long time [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. The main uses of this type of discharges are hollow cathode light sources [8,9] and gas lasers [10][11][12][13].…”

“…Much work has been devoted to the study of the cathode region of glow discharges in ordinary plane and hollow cathode geometries [3][4][5][6][7][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. This 0932-0784 / 93 / 0100-469 $ 01.30/0.…”