Particle fluxes in an electron cyclotron resonance plasma discharge

In electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma reactors, it is extremely important to control critical parameters such as the flux and energy distribution of ions impacting surfaces. These parameters are influenced by physical construction, magnetic field geometry, and chemical kinetics. In this article we present a model that accounts for the magnetic field geometry in the reactor region. The model is based on the drift kinetic equation approach and it is used to calculate the axial and radial ion fluxes in the materials processing zone of an ECR plasma source. Analytical expressions for the radial and axial fluxes, the mean energy, and the ion density are derived. An acceptable approximation is obtained from the described model and that reported in the literature from experimental results.