GENERATION OF UNIFORMLY-DISTRIBUTED PLASMA

摘要

Methods and apparatus for generating uniformly-distributed plasma are described. A plasma generator according to the invention includes a cathode assembly (204) that is positioned adjacent to an anode (216) and forming a gap (220) there between. A gas source (228) supplies a volume of feed gas and/or a volume of excited atoms to the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode. A power supply (202) generates an electric field across the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode. The electric field ionizes the volume of feed gas and/or the volume of excited atoms that is supplied to the gap, thereby creating a plasma in the gap.