Simulation of materials-processing plasmas

Collaborators: Ned Hammond, Parviz Moin

 

                  

The methods used to simulate turbulence can be profitably applied to other disciplines. One such example is materials-processing plasmas. We have developed a numerical method (Hammond et al. 2002) to simulate radio-frequency low temperature plasma discharges. The electron density in these plasmas varies from unity in the interior to near zero at the boundaries, in a very unsteady manner. This sharp unsteady gradient poses severe challenges to their computation. We have developed an approach to simulate these plasmas that is accurate to within 3% on grids that use as few as 20 points. In contrast currently used methods require about 400 points to obtain the same accuracy; on 20 points, they have a factor of two error. This level of accuracy is imperative if accurate three-dimensional simulations are to be performed. Current work is applying these numerical techniques to examine the interaction of plasmas with turbulent flows. The above figures show a schematic of plasma-assisted etching, and contours of electron density from simulations in an axisymmetric reactor.

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