Similarities between the generation and dynamics of concentric and non- concentric multiple double layers

Abstract

We report new experimental results on the generation and dynamics of multiple double layers in front of a positively biased electrode immersed in a DP-machine plasma. Depending on the geometry or the dimensions of the electrode, this complex space charge configuration can appear in two different modes. If the electrode is small with respect to the plasma size, the phenomenon appears as a set of concentric luminous shells with different intensities. If the electrode has large dimensions, or a one-dimensional geometry, the spherical double layers appear adjacent to each other, as equally separated luminous plasma blobs. Our experimental investigations prove that in both of cases we deal with almost the same phenomenon. The same elementary processes, namely electron-neutral impact excitations and ionizations, play the key role in the generation and dynamics of each structure. This is emphasized in the static current-voltage characteristic of the electrode, which shows similar jumps of the current, associated with hysteresis.