ABSTRACT
A study involving an electron probe method revealed that a considerable quantity of negative ions exist in the plasma of tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) [6]. The negative ions are found only with atoms that have high electronegativity (i.e., halogens and oxygen); consequently, in the glow discharge of most monomers without those elements, the presence and the role of negative ions can be virtually neglected. The negative ions formed by an electric discharge are generally very reactive, and it is
difficult to detect negative ions quantitatively because ordinary plasma diagnostic methods, such as positive ion mass spectrometry are not effective in the detection of negative ions. Thus, it is not surprising that the role of negative ions has been overlooked in the postulations of the plasma polymerization of perfluorocarbons.
