Plasma, gaseous

Plasma gaseous Increased chemical groups Decreased chemical groups Reference... 

Often the properties of thin films are affected by the properties of the underlying material (substrate) and can vary through the thickness of the film. Thicker layers are generally called coatings. An atomistic deposition process can be done in a vacuum, plasma, gaseous, or electrolytic environment. 

Atomization and Excitation Atomic emission requires a means for converting an analyte in solid, liquid, or solution form to a free gaseous atom. The same source of thermal energy usually serves as the excitation source. The most common methods are flames and plasmas, both of which are useful for liquid or solution samples. Solid samples may be analyzed by dissolving in solution and using a flame or plasma atomizer. 

This chapter should be read in conjunction with Chapter 6, Coronas, Plasmas, and Arcs. A plasma is defined as a gaseous phase containing neutral molecules, ions, and electrons. The numbers of ions and electrons are usually almost equal. In a plasma torch, the plasma is normally formed in a monatomic gas such as argon flowing between two concentric quartz tubes (Figure 14.1). 

Fundamentally, introduction of a gaseous sample is the easiest option for ICP/MS because all of the sample can be passed efficiently along the inlet tube and into the center of the flame. Unfortunately, gases are mainly confined to low-molecular-mass compounds, and many of the samples that need to be examined cannot be vaporized easily. Nevertheless, there are some key analyses that are carried out in this fashion the major one i.s the generation of volatile hydrides. Other methods for volatiles are discussed below. An important method of analysis uses lasers to vaporize nonvolatile samples such as bone or ceramics. With a laser, ablated (vaporized) sample material is swept into the plasma flame before it can condense out again. Similarly, electrically heated filaments or ovens are also used to volatilize solids, the vapor of which is then swept by argon makeup gas into the plasma torch. However, for convenience, the methods of introducing solid samples are discussed fully in Part C (Chapter 17). 

A number of elements form volatile hydrides, as shown in the table. Some elements form very unstable hydrides, and these have too transient an existence to exist long enough for analysis. Many elements do not form stable hydrides or do not form them at all. Some elements, such as sodium or calcium, form stable but very nonvolatile solid hydrides. The volatile hydrides listed in the table are gaseous and sufficiently stable to allow analysis, particularly as the hydrides are swept into the plasma flame within a few seconds of being produced. In the flame, the hydrides are decomposed into ions of their constituent elements. 

Other vapor introduction systems are discussed in Parts B and C (Chapters 16 and 17) because, although liquids and solids are ultimately introduced to the plasma flame as vapors, these samples are usually prepared differently from naturally gaseous ones. For example, electrothermal (oven) or laser heating of solids and liquids to form vapors is used extensively to get the samples into the plasma flame. At one extreme with very volatile liquids, no heating is necessary, but, at the other extreme, very high temperatures are needed to vaporize a sample. For convenience, the electrothermal and laser devices are discussed in Part C (Chapter 17) rather than here. 

Plasma consists of a gaseous mixture of neutral species, ions, and electrons. The charged species are in approximately equal concentrations. 

Thermal ionization. Takes place when an atom or molecule interacts with a heated surface or is in a gaseous environment at high temperatures. Examples of the latter include a capillary arc plasma, a microwave plasma, or an inductively coupled plasma. 

The apphcation of microwave power to gaseous plasmas is also of interest (see Plasma technology). The basic microwave engineering procedure is first to calculate the microwave fields internal to the plasma and then calculate the internal power absorption given the externally appHed fields. The constitutive dielectric parameters are useful in such calculations. In the absence of d-c magnetic fields, the dielectric permittivity, S, of a plasma is given by equation 10 ... 

Many have worked on plasma technology. Table 1 Hsts a few of the contributors (3—5) and the corresponding dates associated with their concepts. Table 1. Important Concepts in Gaseous Electronics... 

Definitions. When positive charges are fixed in a soHd, but the electrons are free to move about, the system is called a soHd-state plasma. In a Hquid-state plasma, both the positive and negative charges are frilly mobile. These soHd-state and Hquid system are examples of condensed matter plasmas as opposed to gaseous plasmas. 

Also shown in Figure 1 are the Debye screening length and Debye sphere size. For gaseous plasmas, A)-, 1 (11). SoHd-state plasmas or... 

Sources of matter and energy are necessary for the production of gaseous plasmas, and such plasmas serve as sources of matter and energy in their appheations ie, gaseous laboratory plasmas can be viewed as transducers of matter and energy. The initial and final forms of the material that enters a plasma and the requisite energy vary widely, depending on the particular plasma source and its utilization. 

Restraining a gaseous plasma from expanding and compressing is also a form of plasma modification. Two reasons for plasma confinement are maintenance of the plasma and exclusion of contaminants. Plasmas may be confined by surrounding material, eg, the technique of wall confinement (23). A second approach to confinement involves the use of magnetic fields. The third class of confinement schemes depends on the inertial tendency of ions and associated electrons to restrain a plasma explosion for a brief but usehil length of time, ie, forces active over finite times are required to produce outward particle velocities. This inertial confinement is usually, but not necessarily, preceded by inward plasma motion and compression. 

E. Nasser, Fundamentals of Gaseous Ionisation and Plasma Electronics, John Wiley Sons, Inc., New York, 1971. 

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