Characteristics of a multidipole ion source

The properties of a steady-state, dc discharge multidipole ion source have been investigated. The plasma density in the source depends on the magnet geometries, the discharge voltage, and the bias voltage on the first extraction grid. Different schemes to reduce the loss of ions to the chamber wall are described. Hydrogen ion species in the extracted beam are studied by a mass analyzer.     

Development of a plasma generator for a long pulse ion source for neutral beam injectors

A plasma generator for a long pulse H(+)/D(+) ion source has been developed. The plasma generator was designed to produce 65 A H(+)/D(+) beams at an energy of 120 keV from an ion extraction area of 12 cm in width and 45 cm in length. Configuration of the plasma generator is a multi-cusp bucket type with SmCo permanent magnets. Dimension of a plasma chamber is 25 cm in width, 59 cm in length, and 32.5 cm in depth. The plasma generator was designed and fabricated at Japan Atomic Energy Agency. Source plasma generation and beam extraction tests for hydrogen coupling with an accelerator of the KSTAR ion source have been performed at the KSTAR neutral beam test stand under the agreement of Japan-Korea collaborative experiment. Spatial uniformity of the source plasma at the extraction region was measured using Langmuir probes and ±7% of the deviation from an averaged ion saturation current density was obtained. A long pulse test of the plasma generation up to 200 s with an arc discharge power of 70 kW has been successfully demonstrated. The arc discharge power satisfies the requirement of the beam production for the KSTAR NBI. A 70 keV, 41 A, 5 s hydrogen ion beam has been extracted with a high arc efficiency of 0.9 -1.1 A/kW at a beam extraction experiment. A deuteron yield of 77% was measured even at a low beam current density of 73 mA/cm(2).     

Characterization of the versatile ion source and possible applications as injector for future projects

The versatile ion source (VIS) is an off-resonance microwave discharge ion source which generates a slightly overdense plasma (n(e) ≈ 10(17) cm(-3)) operating at 2.45 GHz and producing more than 50 mA of proton beams. A detailed characterization of the source, by operating between 60 and 75 kV, in terms of emittance, current extracted and proton fraction is reported below. Moreover, passive techniques (alumina coating of the plasma chamber walls, BN disks at the injection and extraction endplates) have been used to improve the performance of the source, increasing the electron density for a more efficient ionization. The know-how achieved with the VIS source may be useful for the different project, particularly for the European spallation source.     

Hollow target magnetron-sputter-type solid material ion source

A thin-walled aluminum (Al) hollow electrode has been inserted into an ion source to serve as an electrode for a radio frequency magnetron discharge. The produced plasma stabilized by argon (Ar) gas sputters the Al electrode to form a beam of Al(+) and Ar(+) ions. The total beam current extracted through a 3 mm diameter extraction hole has been 50 μA, with the Al(+) ion beam occupying 30% of the total beam current.     

An experimental apparatus for Penning ion source research

An experimental apparatus and the research results of the discharge characteristics of a demountable Penning ion source are described. This apparatus is designed for both fundamental reflective-discharge investigations and the optimization of particular ion-source designs. The use of annular and grid anodes made it possible to visualize the discharge burning region and their structure depending on the pressure, the voltage, and the source geometry. Setting a hot cathode in the cathode unit allows the investigation of the nonself-sustained type of discharge and optimization of the ion-optical system. Replaceable cold cathodes (made of different materials) and a composed magnetic system significantly extend the possibilities of optimizing the ion-source constructions.     

Magnetic multipole line-cusp plasma generator for neutral beam injectors

The magnetic multipole line-cusp device developed by MacKenzie and associates has been adapted for use as a neutral beam ion source. It has produced high-density, large volume, quiescent, uniform hydrogen plasmas, which makes it a potential candidate for use as a plasma generator for neutral beam injectors. The device is a water-cooled cylindrical copper discharge chamber (25 cm in diameter by 36 cm long) with one end enclosed by a set of extraction grids with a 15-cm-diam multi-aperture pattern. The chamber wall serves as an anode and is surrounded by an external system of rare-earth cobalt magnets arranged in a line-cusp geometry of 12 cusps; plasma is produced by electron emission from a hot cathode assembly. This source has achieved extracted beam currents of 12 A at 18.5 kV, radial plasma density uniformities of +/-5% over a 15-cm diameter, noise levels of less than +/-0.5%, and arc efficiencies (beam current/arc power) of 0.6 A/kW.     

Characterization of plasma ion source utilizing anode spot with positively biased electrode for stable and high-current ion beam extraction

The operating conditions of a rf plasma ion source utilizing a positively biased electrode have been investigated to develop a stably operating, high-current ion source. Ion beam characteristics such as currents and energies are measured and compared with bias currents by varying the bias voltages on the electrode immersed in the ambient rf plasma. Current-voltage curves of the bias electrode and photographs confirm that a small and dense plasma, so-called anode spot, is formed near an extraction aperture and plays a key role to enhance the performance of the plasma ion source. The ion beam currents from the anode spot are observed to be maximized at the optimum bias voltage near the knee of the characteristic current-voltage curve of the anode spot. Increased potential barrier to obstruct beam extraction is the reason for the reduction of the ion beam current in spite of the increased bias current indicating the density of the anode spot. The optimum bias voltage is measured to be lower at higher operating pressure, which is favorable for stable operation without severe sputtering damage on the electrode. The ion beam current can be further enhanced by increasing the power for the ambient plasma without increasing the bias voltage. In the same manner, noble gases with higher atomic number as a feedstock gas are preferable for extracting higher beam current more stably. Therefore, performance of the plasma ion source with a positively biased electrode can be enhanced by controlling the operating conditions of the anode spot in various manners.     

Analysis of the H- ion emissive surface in the extraction region of negative ion sources

To understand the plasma characteristics in the extraction region of negative H(-) sources is very important for the optimization of H(-) extraction from the sources. The profile of plasma density and electrostatic potential in the extraction region with and without extraction grid voltage are analyzed with a 2D particle in cell modeling of the NIFS-RD H(-) sources. The simulation results make clear the physical process forming a double ion plasma layer (which consists only of positive H(+) and negative H(-) ions) recently observed in the Cs-seeded experiments of the NIFS-R&D source in the vicinity of the extraction hole and the plasma grid. The results also give a useful insight into the formation mechanism of the plasma meniscus and the H(-) extraction process for such double ion plasma.     

An ion thruster internal discharge chamber electrostatic probe diagnostic technique using a high-speed probe positioning system

Extensive resources have been allocated to diagnose and minimize lifetime-limiting factors in gridded ion thrusters. While most of this effort has focused on grid erosion, results from wear tests indicate that discharge cathode erosion may also play an important role in limiting the lifetime of ring-cusp ion thrusters proposed for future large flagship missions. The detailed characterization of the near-cathode discharge plasma is essential for mitigating discharge cathode erosion. However, severe difficulty is encountered when attempting to measure internal discharge plasma parameters during thruster operation with conventional probing techniques. These difficulties stem from the high-voltage, high-density discharge cathode plume, which is a hostile environment for probes. A method for interrogating the discharge chamber plasma of a working ion thruster over a two-dimensional grid is demonstrated. The high-speed axial reciprocating probe positioning system is used to minimize thruster perturbation during probe insertion and to reduce heating of the probe. Electrostatic probe measurements from a symmetric double Langmuir probe are presented over a two-dimensional spatial array in the near-discharge cathode assembly region of a 30-cm-diameter ring-cusp ion thruster. Electron temperatures, 2-5 eV, and number density contours, with a maximum of 8 x 10(12) cm(-3) on centerline, are measured. These data provide detailed electron temperature and number density contours which, when combined with plasma potential measurements, may shed light on discharge cathode erosion processes and the effect of thruster operating conditions on erosion rates.     

Brightness enhancement of plasma ion source by utilizing anode spot for nano applications

Anode spots are known as additional discharges on positively biased electrode immersed in plasmas. The anode spot plasma ion source (ASPIS) has been investigated as a high brightness ion source for nano applications such as focused ion beam (FIB) and nano medium energy ion scattering (nano-MEIS). The generation of anode spot is found to enhance brightness of ion beam since the anode spot increases plasma density near the extraction aperture. Brightness of the ASPIS has been estimated from measurement of emittance for total ion beam extracted through sub-mm aperture. The ASPIS is installed to the FIB system. Currents and diameters of the focused beams with∕without anode spot are measured and compared. As the anode spot is turned on, the enhancement of beam current is observed at fixed diameter of the focused ion beam. Consequently, the brightness of the focused ion beam is enhanced as well. For argon ion beam, the maximum normalized brightness of 12,300 A∕m(2) SrV is acquired. The ASPIS is applied to nano-MEIS as well. The ASPIS is found to increase the beam current density and the power efficiency of the ion source for nano-MEIS. From the present study, it is shown that the ASPIS can enhance the performance of devices for nano applications.     

Design and operating characteristics of new type cold cathode ion source

In this work, the design and performance of new type ion source are described. The discharge mechanism of the source is based on creating an arc discharge through a saddle electric field inside the discharge tube. The saddle electric field is created by immersing an annular anode inside the discharge tube covered from the upper and lower ends with two flanges. These two flanges act as cathodes. The discharge tube is surrounded by a solenoid coil which produces an axial magnetic field (up to 400 G) measured at the center of the source. Measurements have been performed to find out the influence of arc power, pressure, discharge voltage, magnetic field, and extracting voltage on the ion source properties. The source yields an argon ion current of approximately 0.6 mA and electron current of approximately 4 mA at normal operating conditions (extraction voltage V(ex)=7 kV, pressure of 5.5x10(-4) Torr, V(arc)=400 V, I(arc)=1 A, B=200 G). It showed an energy spread of 20 eV at a discharge voltage of 400 V and an extraction voltage of 3 kV.     

Characteristics of low-energy ion beams extracted from a wire electrode geometry

Beams of argon ions with energies less than 50 eV were extracted from an ion source through a wire electrode extractor geometry. A retarding potential energy analyzer (RPEA) was constructed in order to characterize the extracted ion beams. The single aperture RPEA was used to determine the ion energy distribution function, the mean ion energy and the ion beam energy spread. The multi-cusp hot cathode ion source was capable of producing a low electron temperature gas discharge to form quiescent plasmas from which ion beam energy as low as 5 eV was realized. At 50 V extraction potential and 0.1 A discharge current, the ion beam current density was around 0.37 mA/cm(2) with an energy spread of 3.6 V or 6.5% of the mean ion energy. The maximum ion beam current density extracted from the source was 0.57 mA/cm(2) for a 50 eV ion beam and 1.78 mA/cm(2) for a 100 eV ion beam.     

Subcutoff microwave driven plasma ion sources for multielemental focused ion beam systems

A compact microwave driven plasma ion source for focused ion beam applications has been developed. Several gas species have been experimented including argon, krypton, and hydrogen. The plasma, confined by a minimum B multicusp magnetic field, has good radial and axial uniformity. The octupole multicusp configuration shows a superior performance in terms of plasma density (~1.3 x 10(11) cm(-3)) and electron temperature (7-15 eV) at a power density of 5-10 Wcm(2). Ion current densities ranging from a few hundreds to over 1000 mA/cm(2) have been obtained with different plasma electrode apertures. The ion source will be combined with electrostatic Einzel lenses and should be capable of producing multielemental focused ion beams for nanostructuring and implantations. The initial simulation results for the focused beams have been presented.     

Beam current enhancement of microwave plasma ion source utilizing double-port rectangular cavity resonator

Microwave plasma ion source with rectangular cavity resonator has been examined to improve ion beam current by changing wave launcher type from single-port to double-port. The cavity resonators with double-port and single-port wave launchers are designed to get resonance effect at TE-103 mode and TE-102 mode, respectively. In order to confirm that the cavities are acting as resonator, the microwave power for breakdown is measured and compared with the E-field strength estimated from the HFSS (High Frequency Structure Simulator) simulation. Langmuir probe measurements show that double-port cavity enhances central density of plasma ion source by modifying non-uniform plasma density profile of the single-port cavity. Correspondingly, beam current from the plasma ion source utilizing the double-port resonator is measured to be higher than that utilizing single-port resonator. Moreover, the enhancement in plasma density and ion beam current utilizing the double-port resonator is more pronounced as higher microwave power applied to the plasma ion source. Therefore, the rectangular cavity resonator utilizing the double-port is expected to enhance the performance of plasma ion source in terms of ion beam extraction.     

Investigation of ISIS and Brookhaven National Laboratory ion source electrodes after extended operation

Linac4 accelerator of Centre Europe?en de Recherches Nucle?aires is under construction and a RF-driven H(-) ion source is being developed. The beam current requirement for Linac4 is very challenging: 80 mA must be provided. Cesiated plasma discharge ion sources such as Penning or magnetron sources are also potential candidates. Accelerator ion sources must achieve typical reliability figures of 95% and above. Investigating and understanding the underlying mechanisms involved with source failure or ageing is critical when selecting the ion source technology. Plasma discharge driven surface ion sources rely on molybdenum cathodes. Deformation of the cathode surfaces is visible after extended operation periods. A metallurgical investigation of an ISIS ion source is presented. The origin of the deformation is twofold: Molybdenum sputtering by cesium ions digs few tenths of mm cavities while a growth of molybdenum is observed in the immediate vicinity. The molybdenum growth under hydrogen atmosphere is hard and loosely bound to the bulk. It is, therefore, likely to peel off and be transported within the plasma volume. The observation of the cathode, anode, and extraction electrodes of the magnetron source operated at BNL for two years are presented. A beam simulation of H(-), electrons, and Cs(-) ions was performed with the IBSimu code package to qualitatively explain the observations. This paper describes the operation conditions of the ion sources and discusses the metallurgical analysis and beam simulation results.     

Characterization of plasma parameters, first beam results, and status of electron cyclotron resonance source

Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma source at 50 keV, 30 mA proton current has been designed, fabricated, and assembled. Its plasma study has been done. Plasma chamber was excited with 350 W of microwave power at 2450 MHz, along with nitrogen and hydrogen gases. Microwave power was fed to the plasma chamber through waveguide. Plasma density and electron temperature were studied under various operating conditions, such as magnetic field, gas pressure, and transversal distance. Langmuir probe was used for plasma characterization using current-voltage variation. The nitrogen plasma density calculated was approximately 4.5 x 10(11) cm(-3), and electron temperatures of 3-10 eV (cold) and 45-85 eV (hot) were obtained. The total ion beam current of 2.5 mA was extracted, with two-electrode extraction geometry, at 15 keV beam energy. The optimization of the source is under progress to extract 30 mA proton beam current at 50 keV beam energy, using three-electrode extraction geometry. This source will be used as an injector to continuous wave radio frequency quadrupole, a part of 100 MeV proton linac. The required root-mean-square normalized beam emittance is less than 0.2pi mm mrad. This article presents the study of plasma parameters, first beam results, and status of ECR proton source.     

Simple, high current, antimony ion source

A simple metal ion source capable of producing a continuous, uncontaminated, high current beam of Sb ions is presented. It produced a total ion current of 200 muA at 1 kV extraction voltage. A discharge occurred in the source at a pressure of 6x10(-4) Torr. The ion current extracted from the source increased with the 3/2 power of the extraction voltage. The perveance of the source and ion density in the plasma were 8x10(-9) and 1.8x10(11) cm(-3), respectively.     

High frequency operation of a hot filament cathode for a magnetized plasma ion source

A tungsten filament cathode has been operated with an ac heating current to excite a plasma in a linear magnetic field. Both the discharge current and the ion saturation current in plasma near the extraction hole of the ion source exhibited fluctuations. The discharge current fluctuated with the amplitude less than 2% of the average, and the frequency two times the frequency of the heating current. Fluctuation amplitude of the ion saturation current was about 10% of the average, while the frequency was the same as that of the heating current. The ac operation has prolonged the lifetime of a hot filament cathode by about 50%.     

Numerical analysis of surface produced H- ions by using two-dimensional particle-in-cell method

The modeling and analysis of a negative ion source is proceeding by using a 2D particle-in-cell simulation. The effect of the H(-) ion production on the plasma grid (PG) surface is investigated. It is shown that with the increase of H(-) ions per time step, the H(-) ion current density is enhanced, while the electron current density decreases with increasing the H(-) production rate on the PG surface. These results agree well with the experimental results observed in typical negative ion sources. Moreover, it is found that plasma quasi-neutrality is held mainly by both H(+) and H(-) ions in the bulk plasma around the PG.     

A source of broad homogeneous beams of low-energy (∼0.5 keV) gas ions

A source of gas ions (argon, oxygen, nitrogen, etc.), the operating principle of which is based on the use of a glow discharge in an electrode system of a wide-aperture hollow cathode and anode in a magnetic field, is described. The exit aperture diameter of the hollow cathode, increased up to a size close to the ion beam diameter (10 cm), ensures the uniform ion emission of the plasma generated in the discharge region near the anode. A decreased angular divergence or increased ultimate ion-beam current density is achieved by a change in the potential drop in the space charge sheath between the plasma and the ion optics. The source generates broad (50 cm²) slightly diverging (ω/2∼3°–5°) ion beams with energies of 300–1000 eV at a beam current density of ∼0.5 mA/cm².