ABSTRACT
The generation of diamond deposition discharges can be accomplished by direct thermal heating, by chemical reactions, and by electromagnetic/electric field excitation of plasma discharges. The behavior of the electromagnetic energy in each of these systems and how it couples to and excites the plasma discharge depends on the geometry of the structure, the input power coupling structure, and the size, density, pressure, and composition of the chemical vapour deposition (CVD) discharge. For collisional, non-magnetized plasma discharges, such as often used for diamond CVD deposition, the frequency of excitation is generally less than the plasma frequency. The electromagnetic fields are solved by using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The characteristics of the discharge are simulated by a fluid plasma model which solves the electron and ion continuity equations, the electron energy balance equation, and the Poisson equation. The discharge characteristics information is coupled to the FDTD model to modify the plasma conductivity and calculate new discharge power absorption.
