WHYSTUDYPLASMASCIENCE Shabbir A. Khan* · 2016. 12. 27. · WHYSTUDYPLASMASCIENCE Shabbir A. Khan*...

WHY STUDY PLASMASCIENCE Shabbir A. Khan*

* National Centre for Physics, Quaid-i-Azam University Campus, Islamabad, Pakistan. E-mail: [email protected]

A scientific journal of COMSATS – SCIENCE VISION Vol.19 No.1&2 (January to December 2013) 1

ABSTRACT

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Plasma: the Fourth State of Matter

Plasma is an essential stage in the process offormation of matter from elementary particles up tocondensed matter. Plasma science is a rapidlygrowing research field with its naturalconnections from ultrashort scale nanoscience togigantic scales of astrophysics. The technologicalapplications of plasma science have been ingeniousand its influence on scientific progress is significant.That is why the fascinating paradigm of many-body(plasma) physics in classical, as well as quantummechanical regimes is on the forefront of researchnowadays. This article aims to overview the mainfeatures of this versatile field with description of itspotential technological applications and futurepromises. It will also help to understand the mainreasons of growing interest in plasma science andprovide motivation to students to opt it as a futureresearch area.

inter-disciplinary

The world is undergoing a new revolution fueled byrapid progress in science and technology of the pastdecades. Principles of fundamental physics whichhave been known before, from abstract theory, arenow suddenly becoming accessible to directexperimental observations and evidences. There areexamples of various physical phenomena whoseimpact on the society has become so vital that thesehave became separate disciplines of research inphysics.

Plasma science encompasses a variety of sciencedisciplines ranging from plasma physics to aspects ofatomic and molecular physics, chemistry, and materialscience. Its broad, interdisciplinary nature alsoincludes ionized gases that range from classical toquantum, cold to hot, weakly ionized to highly ionized,and from collisional to collisionless. These types ofplasmas underlie variety of applications and naturalphenomena. However, many fundamentalconsiderations dictate the range of parameters fromman-made plasmas in laboratories to natural plasmain the universe. The subject is difficult to characterizekeeping in mind the diversity of what is included in‘plasma science’. However, its vital contribution to abroad range of applications in scientific &

technological developments are due to the samediversity.

Sir William Crookes, an English physicist, identifiedplasma in 1879. The word ‘plasma’ was first coined byI. Langmuir and L. Tonks in 1929 for description ofoscillations of ionized gases in an electrical discharge.Later on, the definition was broadened to define astate of matter (also known as ‘the fourth state ofmatter’) occurring naturally in the cosmos. Generally,plasma is referred to as ‘a statistical system of thecharged, excited, and neutral assemblies, includingsome or all of the following: electrons, positive and/ornegative ions, atoms, molecules, radicals, andradiation exhibiting collective motion — a joint ping-pong game’. As a whole, a plasma is electricallyneutral, because any unbalance of charges wouldresult in the long range electric and magnetic fields. Itwill, in turn, move the charges in a way it wouldneutralize charges of opposite sign [1-3].

Plasmas are characterized by various regimesdepending upon the distribution of energy and density,which can be described by classical or quantummechanical models. For instance, the (common)space (e.g., interplanetary and interstellar media) orlaboratory (e.g., gas discharges) plasmas are rarefiedionized gases in random thermal motion. On the otherhand, the electron gas in metals and semiconductorsalso behaves very similar to gaseous plasmas.However, there is a basic difference: the relevantstatistics changes from (classical) Maxwell-Boltzmannto (quantum) Fermi-Dirac. The quantum electron gasin metals is globally neutralized by the lattice ionswhose properties are governed by various controlparameters. Similarly, dense low temperatureplasmas also obey the Bose-Einstein statistics with norestrictions on the number of particles in the sameenergy state. Various plasmas found in nature andlabo ra to r y can be shown by a s imp ledensity–temperature phase diagram (Figure-1) whichillustrates regime of density and temperature ofdifferent plasma systems .

developments and familiar types ofplasmas are

There has been a firm belief that plasma existed sincethe beginning of the universe. At extremely high

†

The historicalbriefly described as follows.

1.2 Historical Developments

†For more details see Ref. 4, 5 & 6

Why Study Plasma Science

A scientific journal of COMSATS – SCIENCE VISION Vol.19 No.1&2 (January to December 2013)2

nuclear densities ( 10 ), the physical process likeMott transitions in compressed matter leads to quark-gluon plasma (QGP), a very special kind of plasmainteracting via a (color) Coulomb potential. Suchplasmas are believed to have existed immediatelyafter the Big Bang and seen in Relativistic Heavy IonCollider (RHIC) and Large Hadron Collider (LHC)experiments. Ionized matter found naturally in denseastrophysical objects (e.g., stellar cores, white andbrown dwarfs, neutron stars, etc.) and interior of giantplanets in the solar system (e.g., Jovian planets)constitutes plasma under extreme conditions ofdensity. Here, the electrons may be non-relativistic orrelativistic depending upon the electron energy.However, on a terrestrial scales, the developments inplasma physics dates back to early 1920s whenplasma started getting recognition with majorcontributions from the Nobel Prize winning scientistIrving Langmuir, who used the term plasma todescribe the charge dynamics in ionized gas.Langmuir was inspired by the blood plasma whichcarries red and white corpuscles in the way an ionizedgas carries electrons and ions. Langmuir, Tonks, andothers also started its first technological inception byfinding the ways to extend the lifetime of tungsten-filament light bulbs greatly. In the process, theydeveloped the Theory of Sheaths in Plasmas and wellknown theory of Electron Plasma Oscillations (nowcalled Langmuir Wave Theory. The field was somehowestablished in 1930s, and got impetus in 1940s when

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another Noble Laureate, Hannes Alfven, developed atheory of hydromagnetic waves (now called Alfven enWaves) and revealed its significance in astrophysicalsettings. This later led to the explanation of somecomplex phenomena like solar coronal heating, thes o l a r w i n d i n t e r a c t i o n s i n s p a c e , t h emagnetohydrodynamics (MHD) of laboratorysystems, and so on. The significance of plasma in thedescription of theory and experiments onthermonuclear, the creation of thermonuclear bomb,and the idea of sustainable controlled thermonuclearreaction for energy production generated a great dealof interest in the field of plasma physics since 1950s.At first, USA was the main contributor in the researchwith secrecy due to the observations of thedevastative potential of the fusion. In parallel, the workcontinued independently in the USSR and the UK. Inshort time, the world recognized the importance ofjoint efforts in the field, with major emphasis on thepeaceful use of fusion for energy discouraging itsdestructive uses. The institutions like InternationalAtomic Energy Agency (IAEA) were established forcoordinated efforts in the right directions. Progress inplasmas again accelerated with the development oftokamak machine by Russians by the end of 1960s. By1970s and 1980s many tokamaks with improvedperformance were constructed and fusion breakevenhad been achieved in tokamaks .

Various new applications of plasma physics appeared

†

Figure-1: Some Phenomena in the range of plasma physics. Regimes that are new areas of study since1990 are indicated in gray, including the future regimes of the National Ignition Facility (NIF) and the

International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) [Ref. 7]

†For further details, see Ref. 8.

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Shabbir A. Khan

in 1970s, and were developed as critical technique forthe fabrication of the tiny, complex integrated circuitsused in modern technology. Plasma processing andplasma treatment are vital technologies used in a largenumber of industries with hundreds of applications,some of which are described in the next section.

On the other hand, plasma is a natural medium inspace and astrophysics.

Plasma is operativefrom very small scales of highly compresseddegenerate stars to interstellar and intergalacticscales. The research activities in stellar bodies are themain source of development in space technology,which made possible to launch space missions andsatellites for various purposes. The main players of thespace game in 1970s were USA, Russia, Europe andChina. On the technological side, plasma is thebackbone of huge projects like plasma-based spacemissions, High Frequency Active Auroral ResearchProgram (HAAPRP), Radiation Belt Storm Probes(RBSP), etc., and one of the major areas ofobservations on board by NASA, International SpaceStation (ISS), European SpaceAgency (ESA), etc. [9].

The existence of plasma and its various types caneasily be categorized on the basis of density andtemperature parameters, relevant to laboratory andastrophysical regimes. The density-temperaturephase diagram (Figure-1) helps in defining two majortypes of plasmas, laboratory based or astrophysical. Itincludes low-density plasmas (following classicalphysics laws) and high-density plasmas (followingquantum statistics). Both of these types are found inthe universe, including:

i. Aurorae;ii. Ionospheres, magnetospheres, and interior of

planets;iii. Solar and stellar winds;iv. Solar atmosphere;v. Solar and stellar shock regions;vi. Flux ropes;vii. Coronal mass ejections in the Sun and stars;viii. Interstellar media;ix. Intergalactic media;x. Supernovae remnants (SNRs);xi. Astrophysical jets;xii. Lightning, and ball lightning; andxiii. Matter in degenerate stars (white dwarf, neutron

Plasma has been one of thepriority area of research in space astrophysics, whichhas significantly contributed in our current knowledgeof planetary and space science.

1.3 Occurrences of Plasmas

stars, magnetars).

There are also many types of plasmas produced inlaboratory, including:

i. Gas discharge plasmas;ii. Radiation-beam produced plasmas;iii. Processing plasmas;iv. Micro and nano plasmas;v. Degenerate plasmas;vi. High-energy-density plasmas;vii. Complex plasmas;viii. Fusion plasmas; and so on.

The laboratory plasmas are of particular interest froma technological standpoint (Box-1).

Plasma is truly a many-particle systems with itsdescription in the framework of classical and/orquantum mechanical laws. The mean particle distanceis a key parameter in plasmas, which is large in most ofthe abundant space and astrophysical plasmas. Thatis why the thermal de Broglie wavelength of plasmaspecies (electron) is negligible as compared to theinterparticle distance. So the plasma motion is notinfluenced by quantum effects and the plasmabehavior is classical. Such plasmas can be describedby classical physics and classical statistical laws. Onthe other hand, if it is of the order of or smaller than deBroglie wavelength, the plasma is (quantum)degenerate. In this case, few important and unusualeffects like overlapping of the wave functions, Mott-transitions, etc., take place. For classical systems, theCoulomb coupling parameter is the ratio of averagepotential energy and the average kinetic (thermal)energy. If it is much smaller than unity, the plasmabehaves as an ideal gas of charge carriers, otherwisethe plasma is collisions dominated and the dynamicsof plasma is more complex in nature. For sufficientlycold and dense plasmas, the role of thermal energy istaken over by the Fermi energy, the representative ofthe degeneracy temperature. The strength of particlecorrelations is measured by quantum Coulombcoupling parameter or Brueckner parameter. The idealbehavior is reached when Fermi energy is much largerthan the (potential) interaction energy, otherwisestrong correlations exist and plasma in a system ofmutually interacting quantum particles. Since theFermi energy is density dependent quantity, thequantum plasma state is commonly known as the LowTemperature State as evident from Figure-1. Modelingof quantum (degenerate) plasma is done in the

1.4 Description of Plasma

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framework of well know quantum physics models e.g.,Schrodinger or Heisenberg models, density matrixtheory, quantum field theory, and quantumelectrodynamics because strong interparticleinteractions at de-Broglie length scale impede the useof conventional classical theoretical models [4, 5, 10,11]. The computational methods for many-particleproblems like classical and quantum Monte Carloschemes, Path Integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) methods,(time dependent) Hartree-Fock (HF,TDHF) theory,density functional theory (DFT) are very popularmodels. Its applicability varies from atoms, molecules,solids to classical and quantum fluids, and generalizedto deal with many different situations.

The standard description of non-equilibrium plasmasis based on kinetic theory, and classical and quantumkinetic equations (KEs) have been developed. TheKEs are the most reliable methods for description ofplasmas [12]. Many other methods like non-equilibrium Green’s function (NEGF), Kadanoff–Baym(KB) equations, etc., are also able to extract theinformation on plasma dynamics. Finally, thetheoretical progress is significant, however thesolution and detailed analysis of KEs or the fulldescription of manyparticle systems have been majorchallenges from a theoretical perspective for the lastseveral decades.

Owing to the analytical complexity of the quantumkinetic approach, drastically simplified macroscopicmodels like hydrodynamics are often adopted, whichcan reproduce the salient features of plasma.However, one has a choice with the alternative of

studying a physical problem microscopically withinherent difficulties or macroscopically with lesscluttered and simpler approach .

Plasma science has spawned new avenues of basicscience. Notably, plasma physicists were among thefirst to open up and develop the new and profoundscience of chaos and nonlinear dynamics. Plasmaphysicists also have great contribution in the study ofaerodynamics and turbulence, playing important rolein safe air travel and other applications. The vibrantscience of plasmas also has a key role in recent newdiscoveries that have occurred in plasma medicine,engineering and technology fields, thus bringing theplasma science on the forefront of basic sciences. Asplasmas are highly conductive and their response toelectric and magnetic fields is rapid, they have been apriority area of research, and plasma science apotential field of interest in future.

Fusion is one of nature’s most spectacular processes.Billions and billions of fusion furnaces, the Sun amongthem (Figure-2), are flaring in the universe, creatinglight and energy. Through the efforts of scientists overthe past seventy years, the physics behind this wonderis now well understood. This provides us the

†

1.5 Basic Plasma Science

2. AREAS OF PLASMA TECHNOLOGY

2.1 Fusion Plasmas

2.1.1 Magnetic Confinement Fusion

Figure-2: Exploding plasma on the Sun the natural fusion furnace. The eruption is liftingplasma above the Sun s surface. [NASA, www.nasa.gov]

†Interested readers of plasma physics can see Ref. 1, 4, 5 & 13 for more details on the description of plasmas.



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information of transmutation of the matter in the Sunand stars, which are transforming hydrogen nuclei intohelium atoms and releasing tremendous amounts ofenergy during the process. With this knowledge athand, the ambition increased to reproduce on Earth asustainable physical process similar to the onesoperative in stars here. But harnessing the energy ofthe stars was to prove a formidable task, morecomplex and arduous than anticipated.

Fusion in laboratory demands very small confinementtime and very large densities (Lawson criterion) [8].History of fusion, the experiments started in the 1930sand fusion physics laboratories were established inalmost every industrialized country. By the mid 1950s‘fusion machines’ were operative on experimentalbasis in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics USSR,the USA, UK, Germany, France, and Japan. Thishelped as similar in understanding of the fusion andassociated processes and technologies.

A major breakthrough was achieved in 1968 whenresearchers in USSR were able to build a doughnut-shaped magnetic confinement device called‘tokamak’. The success was at two levels –achievement of high temperature and plasmaconfinement times – two of the main criteria toachieving fusion that had never been observed before.It made the tokamak most feasible concept in fusionresearch and such devices were built in many parts ofthe world.

Experiments with actual fusion fuel – a mixture ofhydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium started in

early 90s in the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR)in Princeton, USA, and Joint European Torus (JET) inCulham, UK, which carried out the World’s firstcontrolled fusion power experiment. Sufficiently long-duration controlled fusion was later on achieved in aEURATOM-CEAinstallation in France and the TRIAM-1M tokamak in Japan and some other machines. JT-60 machine in Japan achieved the highest values ofthree key parameters in fusion - the plasma density,temperature and confinement time. In these efforts,the scientists have approached the long-sought‘breakeven’ point where a device release as muchenergy as is required to produce fusion.

The availability of limitlessfusion fuel all over the world; no greenhouse gases;safety; no radioactive waste; large-scale energyproduction, and above all, the success in getting‘breakeven’ point, are the factors that have led to theconcept of International Thermonuclear ExperimentalReactor (ITER), the world’s largest multibillion-eurointernational nuclear fusion collaborative tokamakproject [14]. ITER is a mega-science project of sevenstakeholders namely, China, India, Japan, Korea,Russia, USA, as well as aiming tobuild the tokamak at the Cadarache facility in theSouth of France. Construction began in 2007,scheduled to be completed in 2020, with first plasmaproduced in the same year. After resolving all theengineering and science problems (the complicatedgeometry of machine is evident from Figure-3 ), thefirst nuclear fuel – a plasma of two heavy hydrogenisotopes, deuterium and tritium (DT) is scheduled to

2.1.1.1 International Thermonuclear ExperimentalReactor (ITER) Project:

European Union

Shabbir A. Khan


Figure-3: The ITER machine is based on the tokamak concept of magnetic plasma confinement, inwhich the fusion fuel is contained in a doughnut-shaped vessel. With a height of 29 meters and a

diameter of 28 meters, ITER will be the world s largest tokamak. [Ref. 14]

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be injected into the reactor by 2027 and commercialpower production is expected in 2028. Estimatedconstruction, operation and decommissioning cost is15 billion Euro (~20.3 USD) with design to produce500 megawatt of fusion power for 50 megawatt of inputpower for 20 years. If ITER is successful, it could bethe first tokamak based power plant to produce morepower than it consumes. The ITER team of physicistsand engineers has done tremendous job so far and theITER is hoped to be a game-changing solution for thefuture energy .

In addition to tokamak, alternate plasma confinementand fusion concepts are also hot areas of researchnowadays. Some of such concepts include:

Colliding Beam Fusion;Electric Tokamak;Floating Multipole;Dense Plasma Focus (DPF);Heavy Ion Fusion;Electrostatic Confinement;Matter-antimatter systems;Reversed Field Pinch;Field Configuration;Spheromak;Stellarator;Spherical Torus;Magnetized Target Fusion;Tandem Mirror;Z-pinch, and more.

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The scientists have been pursuing fusion for almost 50years now. The research in fusion has increased keyfusion plasma performance parameters by a factor of10,000 over 50 years. This in turn leads us to safelysay that the progress is now less than a factor of 10away from producing the core of a fusion power plant.Although the goal of energy production from plasmafusion is somewhat distant, much of the associatedscience and technologies are being used forcommercial purposes today or will be used in aforeseeable future. The current world market for suchapplications exceeds 100 billion USD per year with anoticeable increase every year.

The inertial fusion scheme is based on compressingthe gas of deuterium and tritium into a small pellet ofglass, or other appropriate material, less than or aboutone millimeter in size. The pellet is heated by superintense lasers arranged in appropriate geometries.Laser being the highly coherent radiation source hasthe advantage of being easily focused onto very smallspot sizes. In the process of shining laser on a suitabletarget, some of the laser energy is absorbed by thepellet and a plasma is formed from the outer surfacematerial. This plasma blows out like the gases of arocket, and causes the remains of the pellet to moveinwards with a very high speed. As a result, thedeuterium–tritium mixture at the center of the pellet ishighly compressed, in turn rapidly igniting the fusionreaction. The pressure generated in this process is

2.1.2 Inertial fusion

Figure-4: The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is the world s largest laser for inertial fusion purpose. Threefootball fields could fit inside the NIF Laser and Target Area Building. NIF s 192 intense laser beams can deliverto a target more than 60 times the energy of any previous laser system. NIF became operational in March 2009

and is capable of directing nearly two million joules of ultraviolet laser energy in billionth-of-a-second thetarget chamber center producing compressed plasma for fusion. [Ref. 15]



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tremendously large which explode the pellet. Tosustain the reaction, new deuterium–tritium pellets arethen introduced inside the vacuum chamber where theprocess is repeated again and again. The larger part ofthe energy in this reaction is carried by the neutronswhich are absorbed by some suitable liquid fluid. Thisfluid is heated by the neutron energy and then isremoved by a suitable mechanism to operate a turbinegenerator for production of electricity.

The inertial confinement fusion (ICF) was firstproposed in the early 1970s and now believed to be apractical approach for fusion power generation [16].Throughout 1980s and 1990s, many experimentsaround the world took place to understand thecomplex interaction of intense laser and compressedplasma. However, due to limitations in lasertechnology, the progress could not result in a practicalfusion reactor. Recent advancements in peta andexawatt laser technology like the mega-project ofNational Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence LivermoreNational Laboratory (LLNL, aerial view shown inFigure-4) [15, 16], Laser Megajoule (LMJ) in France,GSI Germany, and Institute of Laser Engineering (ILE)

in Japan has accelerated the progress and hopes forthe commercial laser-plasma fusion reactor in future.

Plasmas span from laboratory systems of nanometerand even smaller scales to astrophysical andcosmological scales underlying numerous importanttechnological applications for the benefit of mankindas well as our understanding of much of the universearound us. Thus, the long list of plasma applicationsfrom electron scale ultrafast phenomena toplasmatechnology-based projects on fusion,aerodynamics, and space probes are not easy tocover in a simple way, for an overview, (Figure-5). Thestrong l inks between scient i f ic progress,development, social security, and quality of life are welldocumented. The contribution of advancement ofplasma science in current technology is undoubtedlytremendous and critical to many future developments.The importance of plasma science is evident fromhuge plasma technology based commercial activityworldwide. In the near past, new plasma technologies

2.2 I N D U S T R I A L A N D C O M M E R C I A LAPPLICATIONS

Shabbir A. Khan


Major Areas of Plasma Technology

Space, Astrophysics and Cosmology

Plasma Sheath Phenomena

Plasma processing and thin filmsPlasma materialsPlasma diagnosticsIndustrial plasmas and applicationsEnvironmental and health applicationsRadiation sources and display applicationsSpace and astrophysical applicationsMicro and nanoscale engineeringPlasma health care Plasmonics technologyPlasma chemistry and plasma medicineHigh Energy-Density Physics (HEDP)

Space Weather technologiesZero gravity plasma probingAuroral research technologyRadiation Belt probingSpace stations experimentationRadiation monitoring technology in space missionsSolar and magnetosphere activity monitoringSpace stations observationsPlasma-technology based space probesNear-planetary and interplanetary data missionsPlasma Jet thrusters for space flightsPropulsionElectromagnetic and Solar wind measurementsEngineering and technical support projects

Spacecraft chargingRF heating

Sheath dynamicsPlasma ion implantationPlasma probe interactions

Laser-produced plasmaBeam-generated plasmaIon beam sourcesFree electron lasers (plasma based)plasma-generated electron sourcesElectron cyclotron (for materials processing)Parallel plate discharges (materials processing)Free electron plasma radiation sourcesX-ray production (for lithography)RF sources, electronic (e.g., materials processing)Coherent microwave sourcesArcs (e.g., steel processing, welding, toxic waste)Ion engines for space propulsionMHD thrusters for space propulsionNeutron productionPlasma production for industrial engineeringCold atmospheric pressure (CAP) plasmasOne atmosphere gun and filamentary discharges

Ion and neutral beam diagnosticsSpectroscopy (mass, photon) and imagingProbe measurements for density-temperature studyScattering for remote sensingLaser-induced fluorescenceLaser transmission diagnostics (e.g., interferometry)Charged-particle spectrometers

Plasma Sources

Plasma Diagnostics

Box-1: Various Types and Applications of Plasmas

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Magnetic field measurementsElectric field measurementsNeutral particle analysisDiagnostics at one atmosphere pressure

Plasma opening switchesHigh-power tubes (thyratrons, ignitrons, klystrons)Pulsed power systemsPlasma-based light sourcesVacuum electronicsThin panel displaysRelativistic electron beams (intense X-ray sources)Plasma channels for flexible beam controlFree electron lasers (tunable)Gyrotrons (high-power short wavelength)Backward wave oscillatorsTraveling wave tubesHelicon antennasLaser self-focusingPlasma lenses for particle acceleratorsDense plasma focus or pinch plasmas for X-raysand beamsCompact X-ray lasersCerenkov grating amplifierPhoton acceleratorsIncineration of hazardous materialsPlasma armature railgunsElectron cyclotron resonance reactorsGas lasersArc lampsTorches and film deposition chambersIgnition and detonation devicesMeteor burst communicationHigh-power light sourcesPlasma accelerators by relativistic space-charge wave

Externally driven wavesWaves as plasma sourcesWaves as diagnosticsWaves as particle acceleratorsBeam instabilities (FEL; gyrotrons)Parametric instabilitiesSolitonsWave-particle interactionsCharged particle trappingWave physics research (e.g., electron plasma, upperhybrid,Low and high frequency mode detectionIonospheric modificationLight ion beam/plasma interactionsSolar power satellite microwavesNonlinear wavesTurbulence, stochasticity and chaosStriation formation and transport

Fundamental studies of many-body dynamicsFundamental studies of Hamiltonian systemsKinetic theoryNonlinear systems; nonequilibrium systemsReconnectionDouble layersSelf-organization and chaosTurbulenceLinkage of micro-, meso-, and macroscale processes

Plasma-Based Devices

Wave and Beam InteractionsApplications

Plasma Based Computational Resources

Industrial PlasmasThermionic energy convertersMHD convertersEngines, MetallurgyCatalysts, SpectroscopyTransformers, Motors, RelaysReactors, IsotopesTransistors, IC’sField-emitter arraysLasers, Flashlamps, displaysPlasma surface treatmentPlasma etchingPlasma thin film deposition (e.g.,superconductingfilm)Ion interaction with solidsSynthesis of materials (e.g., arc furnaces)Destructive plasma chemistryDestruction of chemical warfare agentsThermal plasmasIsotope enrichment and separationElectrical breakdown, switch gear, and coronaPlasma lighting devicesMeat pasteurizationInstrument sterilizationWater treatment systemsGas treatmentElectron scrubbing of flue gases in substancesIon beams for fine mirror polishingPlasma surface treatmentElectron beam-driven fuel injectorsSterilization of medical instrumentsChemical synthesisSynthetic diamond films for thin-panel televisionsystemsPlasma chemical processinglow-energy electron-molecule interactionsLow-pressure discharge plasmasProduction of fullerenesPlasma polymerizationHeavy ion extraction from mixed-mass gas flowsDeterioration of insulating gases

One-atmosphere glow discharge plasma reactor for surfacetreatment of fabrics (enables improved wettability, wickability,printability of polymer fabrics and wool)

Laser ablation plasmas; precise drillingPlasma cutting, drilling, welding, hardeningCeramic powders from plasma synthesisImpulsive surface heating by ion beamsMetal recovery, extraction, scrap meltingPlant growthWaste handling, paper, and cement industriesLaser ablation plasmasLaser and plasma wave undulators for femtosecondpulses of X-rays and gamma raysTunable and chirpable coherent high-frequencyradiation fromLow frequency radiation by rapid plasma creationDC to AC radiation generation by rapid plasmacreationInfrared to soft X-ray tunable free-electron laser(FEL)Optoelectronic microwave and millimeter waveswitchingPlasma source ion implantation (PSII)



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Shabbir A. Khan


Figure-5: Few Plasma Processing Applications in Industry

Figure-6: Plasmas in the kitchen. Plasmas and the technologies they enable are pervasive in our daily life.We all touches or are touched by plasma-enabled technologies every day. Various products from

microelectronics industry, large-area display systems, lighting, packaging, and solar panels to jet engineturbine blades and bio compatible human implants either directly use or are manufactured with plasmas.They in many cases would not exist without plasmas. The result is a better quality of life and economic

competitiveness. Note: CVD, chemical vapor deposition; HID, high-intensity discharge; LED, light emittingdiode; LCD, liquid crystal display. [Ref. 7]

have entered our homes, offices, and around (Figure-6 ).

In the absence of plasma technology, more than 3trillion USD global telecommunications andsemiconductor industry would arguably not exist [7].Here, we provide a bird’s eye view of some of theseapplications where plasma science is essentialingredient .

In this article, we have presented an overview of thevast field of plasma science and its technologicalimprints on society with a brief description of historicaldevelopments and occurrences of plasmas. Ratherthan going into the rigorous discussion on variousaspects of plasmas, the basic concepts of plasmas infusion and other major technological applicationshave been pointed out. The tremendous activitiesshow that plasma science is on the cusp of a new eramaking significant breakthroughs in the next decadepossible. For example, the giant projects on burningplasmas like ITER, NIF, HiPER, ILE, are expected totake critical steps on the road to commercial fusion.Low-temperature plasma industrial applications arealready changing everyday lives. Plasma scientistsare on call to help crack the mysteries of exoticuniverse. This make the dynamic future of the fieldexciting but challenging at the same time.

The significant contribution of plasmas in technologyhas made it important to nurture fundamentalknowledge of plasma science across all of itssubfields. It will make possible to advance the scienceand to create opportunities for a broader range ofscience-based applications. Such advancements willplay a key role in future national and global priority

†

3. CONCLUSIONS

On Earth, we live on an island of ”ordinary” matterwhich has connections with plasmas in different ways.We have learned to work, play, and rest using thefamiliar states of matter solid, liquid, and gas butplasma is least known. When considered inclusively, itis clear that plasma science and technologyencompasses immense diversity, pervasiveness andpotential. Diversity through numerous topical areas;pervasiveness by covering the full range of energy,density, time and spatial scales; and potential throughinnumerable current and future applications. Thusleading contribution of plasmas in science andtechnology of 21 century is obvious.

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goa ls such as fus ion energy, economiccompetitiveness, and industrial activities. The vitalityof plasma science also demands transnational effortsfor joint ventures on crosscutting plasma research [7].

1. Bittencourt, J. A., 2004. Fundamentals of PlasmaPhysics. Springer, New York.

2. National Research Council, 1986. Project reportby Panel on the Physics of Plasmas and Fluids,Physics Survey Committee, Board on Physics andAstronomy, Plasmas and Fluids. [e-book] NationalAcademies Press, Washington, DC. Available athttp://www.nap.edu/catalog/632.html [Accessed25 Dec. 2012].

3. Eliezer, S. and Eliezer, Y., 2001. The fourth state ofmatter. 2nd ed. IOP Publishing, Bristol.

4. Bonitz, M., Horing, N., Meichsner, J., and Ludwig,P., 2010. Introduction to Complex Plasmas.Springer, Berlin.

5. Khan, S. A., and Bonitz M., 2014. QuantumHydrodynamics. [Book chapter] in: ComplexPlasmas: Scientific Challenges and TechnologicalOpportunities. (eds.) Bonitz, M. Becker, K. Lopez,J. and Thomsen, H., Springer, Berlin. Availablethrough: Cornell University Library e-Print archivewebsite http://arxiv.org/pdf/1310.0283v1.pdf[Accessed 26 May, 2014].

6. Perspectives on Plasma, the PlasmasI n t e r n a t i o n a l ( P L I N T L ) w e b s i t ehttp://www.plasmas.org/basics.htm [Accessed 20Jan. 2013].

7. National Research Council, 2007. Project Reportby Plasma 2010 Committee, Plasma ScienceCommittee, Plasma Science: AdvancingKnowledge in the National Interests. [e-book]National Academies Press, Washington, DC.Available at http: //www.nap.edu/catalog/11960.html [Accessed 15 Dec. 2012].

8. Wesson, J., 1997. Tokamaks, 2nd ed. ClarendonPress, Oxford USA.

9. NASA. Space Plasmas and Technology, Availableat: http://www.nasa.gov [Accessed 25 Jan. 2013].

10. Bonitz, M., Semkat D., 2006. Introduction toComputational Methods for Many-Body Physics.Rinton press, Princeton.

11. Kremp, D., Schlanges, M., and Kraeft, W.D., 2005.Quantum Statistics of Nonideal Plasmas.Springer, Berlin.

12. Bonitz, M., 1998. Quantum Kinetic TheoryTeubner, Germany.

13. Haas, F., 2011. Quantum Plasmas - An

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†For details on technological fronts, see Ref. 7, 17, 18 & 19, and for astrophysical applications, see Ref. 20, 21 & 22.



HydrodynamicApproach. Springer, New York.14. Butler, D., 2013. ITER keeps eye on prize. Nature.

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