Energy transfer processes in glow discharges

Abstract

The characterization of plasma environments requires the evaluation of elastic and inelastic energy loss processes undergone by the species present in the plasma. For instance, the slowing down of sputtered fluxes due to elastic collisions with the background gas determines the distributions of the thermalized and energetic components of deposited fluxes. The inelastic processes undergone by the species in the sheath determine the energy and angular distributions of the sputtering fluxes that reach the cathode in a glow discharge, and also influence the spatial dependence of the electric field in the sheath. We have modeled several processes of interest in glow discharge systems. Estimates of the quantities mentioned above will be commented upon and, whenever possible, compared with other theories and with relevant experimental data.