DIAGNOSTICS OF A DC PULSED-PLASMA-ASSISTED NITRIDING PROCESS

Plasma diagnostics is an in situ tool well adapted to study the processes involved in surface modification. In this paper, we report some experiments carried out using optical emission spectroscopy and electrostatic probes, and performed in an iron nitriding d.c. pulsed plasma. We show that some excitation processes during the temporal postdischarge are the same as those which occur in the discharge. Moreover, results about the effect of the discharge power on the excitation of particular nitrogen levels are discussed. Some first results about the experimental determination of the electron energy distribution function are also presented.