Axial Distribution of Plasma Properties in a Hollow Cathode Plasma Discharge

Abstract

Hollow cathode plasma discharge technology has several engineering and industrial applications. To further enhance these applications, information on plasma characteristics (such as its axial distribution inside the hollow cathode cavity) is essential. This work determines the axial distributions of electron temperature and density inside said cavity by inserting a triple probe. The temperature and density inside the hollow cathode cavity were approximately 4 eV and −10¹⁷ m⁻³, respectively. It was also confirmed that the plasma existed over almost the inside the cathode cavity and the electron temperature increased and the electron density decreased rapidly in the region near the anode.