Dust Particle Density and Charges in Radio-Frequency Mixture Discharge Plasma

We develop a method for measuring the density and charges of dust particles in a capacitive coupled cylinder discharge chamber in mixtures of gases SiH₄/C₂H₄/Ar. Dust particles are created in situ using these reactive mixtures in rf discharge. A Langmuir probe is employed for the measurement of important plasma parameters, such as electron density, electron temperature and ion density. The density and charges of dust particles is then calculated based on the data of the measurement of these parameters and a known dust plasma sheath model. The curves of dust particle density versus rf power and gas pressure are presented, respectively, under various experimental conditions. The dust charges versus different experimental conditions are also evaluated and presented.