Plasma–Dust Structures in He–Ar RF Discharge

Abstract

The gas mixture discharge has a number of features which can appear in experiments with dusty plasma. For example, in the case of a significant difference in atomic masses of ions and atoms, strong anisotropy of the distribution function over ion velocities takes place, which in turn can cause a significant change in properties of dust structures. In this work, experiments on the study of the dust structures in the gas discharge of a mixture of light and heavy gases, i.e., helium and argon, are analyzed. The results of numerical simulation of ion and electron drift in the mixture of these gases and dust particle charging processes are presented.