Fundamentals and applications of ion-ion plasmas

Ion-ion plasmas can form in the late afterglow of pulsed discharges or downstream of continuous wave discharges in electronegative gases. In ion-ion plasmas, negative ions replace electrons as the negative charge carriers. In the absence of electrons, ion-ion plasmas behave quite differently compared to conventional electron-ion plasmas. Application of a radio frequency bias to a substrate immersed in an ion-ion plasma can be used to extract alternately positive and negative ions, thereby minimizing charging on device features during micro-device fabrication. Ion-ion plasmas are also important in negative ion sources, dusty plasmas, and the D-layer of the earth's atmosphere.