Striations in electronegative capacitive chlorine discharges: effects of pressure, frequency, voltage and secondary electron emission

Abstract Self organized striation structures have been observed in electronegative capacitive discharges under certain operating conditions, which include high electronegativity and an ion plasma frequency comparable to the driving frequency. In this study, striations in capacitive chlorine discharges were explored using one-dimensional particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisional simulations with a 2.54 cm gap driven by a sinusoidal rf voltage of 13.56 MHz. The properties of the discharges are explored focusing on the striations, as the gas pressure, driving voltage amplitude, and secondary electron emission processes are varied. The most realistic secondary electron emission model includes contribution from ions, electrons, and neutrals bombarding the electrodes. The striations start to appear at pressure around 15 Pa and increase in amplitude with increased pressure. We find that the amplitude and the number of striations increase with the addition of secondary electron emission processes to the discharge model. Furthermore, the most realistic model for secondary electron emission is used to explore the striation structures as driving voltage amplitude, driving frequency, and gas pressure is varied. As the pressure is increased, the striation amplitude increases but the number of striations remains unchanged. Higher driving voltage and higher driving frequency increase the ion critical density, resulting in the formation of striation patterns, even when the pressure is low. Increasing the driving frequency further leads to a denser arrangement of striations, with tighter striation gaps, while higher voltage results in a smaller bulk width.