Transverse magnetic field effects on spatial electron temperature distribution in a 13.56 MHz parallel plate capacitive discharge

Abstract

The effect of a transverse magnetic field on spatial electron temperature Te distribution along the line joining the center of capacitively driven rectangular discharge plates, operated at 13.56 MHz in a push-pull configuration, has been presented. It is found that the electron temperature distribution is almost uniform at low operating pressure (1 Pa). However, as the background pressure increases, the electron temperature tends to peak near the discharge plates. The overall magnitude in Te is also found to increase throughout the volume on account of increasing the background pressure. This experimental observation has been qualitatively depicted by COMSOL Multiphysics® fluid simulation. A plausible explanation has been given to explain the rise in Te due to the combined effect of the magnetic field and background pressure in this setup.