ENERGY DISTRIBUTION OF NEUTRALS FROM A HYPERTHERMAL NEUTRAL BEAM (HNB) SOURCE

Abstract

The energy distribution of the hyperthermal neutral beam (HNB) produced by impingement of plasma ions onto a metal surface was measured. A HNB source has been developed with a hot-filament discharge. The plasma was confined near the metal surface by using the magnetic field of a magnetron configuration. The produced HNB can be ionized in the plasma by electron impact ionization and charge exchange processes. The energy of the ionized HNB reflects the energy of the HNB. The energy distribution of the ionized HNB passing through the plasma can be detected by using an ion energy analyzer (IEA) that consists of two parallel plates to deflect ions. The peak value and the width of the HNB energy distribution were affected by the bias voltage of the metal surface and the gas pressure. This paper presents the experimental details for HNB generation and the characteristics of the HNB.