Generation of uniformly-distributed plasma
DC CAFCFirst Claim
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1. A plasma generator comprising:
- a. a cathode assembly that is positioned adjacent to an anode and forming a gap there between;
b. a gas source that supplies a volume of feed gas;
c. an excited atom source that generates a volume of excited atoms from the volume of feed gas supplied by the gas source, the excited atom source supplying the volume of excited atoms to the gap; and
d. a power supply that generates an electric field across the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode, the electric field ionizing the volume of gas excited atoms that is supplied to the gap by the excited atom source, thereby creating a plasma in the gap.
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus for generating uniformly-distributed plasma are described. A plasma generator according to the invention includes a cathode assembly that is positioned adjacent to an anode and forming a gap there between. A gas source 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 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.
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Citations
50 Claims
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1. A plasma generator comprising:
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a. a cathode assembly that is positioned adjacent to an anode and forming a gap there between;
b. a gas source that supplies a volume of feed gas;
c. an excited atom source that generates a volume of excited atoms from the volume of feed gas supplied by the gas source, the excited atom source supplying the volume of excited atoms to the gap; and
d. a power supply that generates an electric field across the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode, the electric field ionizing the volume of gas excited atoms that is supplied to the gap by the excited atom source, thereby creating a plasma in the gap. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A plasma generator comprising:
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a. a cathode assembly that is positioned adjacent to an anode and forming a gap there between;
b. an excited atom source that generates a volume of excited atoms from a volume of feed gas, the excited atom source supplying the volume of excited atoms to the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode; and
c. a power supply that generates an electric field across the gap between the cathode assembly and the anode, the electric field ionizing the volume of excited atoms that is supplied to the gap, thereby creating a plasma in the gap. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A method for generating a plasma, the method comprising:
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a. supplying a volume of feed gas;
b. generating a volume of excited atoms from the volume of feed gas and supplying the volume of excited atoms to a gap between a cathode assembly and an anode; and
c. applying an electric field across the gap, the electric field ionizing the volume of feed gas that is supplied to the gap, thereby creating a plasma in the gap. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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44. A method for generating a plasma, the method comprising:
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a. generating a volume of excited atoms from a volume of feed gas;
b. supplying the volume of excited atoms to a gap between a cathode assembly and an anode; and
c. applying an electric field across the gap, the electric field ionizing the volume of excited atoms that is supplied to the gap, thereby creating a plasma in the gap. - View Dependent Claims (45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A plasma generator comprising:
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a. means for generating a volume of excited atoms from a volume of feed gas;
b. means for supplying the volume of excited atoms to a gap between a cathode assembly and an anode; and
c. means for applying an electric field across the gap, the electric field ionizing the volume of excited atoms that is supplied to the gap, thereby creating a plasma in the gap.
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Specification