Multitube surface-wave discharges for increased gas throughput at atmospheric pressure

Large diameter (>10 mm) microwave discharges at atmospheric pressure are often constricted transversely and, when large gas flow rates are used, unstable as far as microwave power coupling is concerned. A group of small bore tubes can be used instead to provide the same gas throughput and ensure a higher probability of interaction of molecules to be processed with the carrier gas. The solution presented provides equal power sharing in these small diameter plasma columns and it employs preferably a single microwave field applicator, therefore enabling one to use only one power generator and yielding a compact system. This scheme is based on the properties of surface-wave sustained plasmas and it calls on basic principles of waveguide circuitry. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(98)05111-1].