Numerical and experimental studies of the carbon etching in EUV-induced plasma

We have used a combination of numerical modeling and experiments to study carbon etching in the presence of a hydrogen plasma. We model the evolution of a low density EUV-induced plasma during and after the EUV pulse to obtain the energy resolved ion fluxes from the plasma to the surface. By relating the computed ion fluxes to the experimentally observed etching rate at various pressures and ion energies, we show that at low pressure and energy, carbon etching is due to chemical sputtering, while at high pressure and energy a reactive ion etching process is likely to dominate

Plasma probe characteristics in low density hydrogen pulsed plasmas

Probe theories are only applicable in the regime where the probe's perturbation of the plasma can be neglected. However, it is not always possible to know, a priori, that a particular probe theory can be successfully applied, especially in low density plasmas. This is especially difficult in the case of transient, low density plasmas. Here, we applied probe diagnostics in combination with a 2D particle-in-cell model, to an experiment with a pulsed low density hydrogen plasma. The calculations took into account the full chamber geometry, including the plasma probe as an electrode in the chamber. It was found that the simulations reproduce the time evolution of the probe IV characteristics with good accuracy. The disagreement between the simulated and probe measured plasma density is attributed to the limited applicability of probe theory to measurements of low density pulsed plasmas. Indeed, in the case studied here, probe measurements would lead to a large overestimate of the plasma density. In contrast, the simulations of the plasma evolution and the probe characteristics do not suffer from such strict applicability limits. These studies show that probe theory cannot be justified through probe measurements

Dynamics of lane formation in driven binary complex plasmas

The dynamical onset of lane formation is studied in experiments with binary complex plasmas under microgravity conditions. Small microparticles are driven and penetrate into a cloud of big particles, revealing a strong tendency towards lane formation. The observed time-resolved lane formation process is in good agreement with computer simulations of a binary Yukawa model with Langevin dynamics. The laning is quantified in terms of the anisotropic scaling index, leading to a universal order parameter for driven systems.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, movies available at http://www.mpe.mpg.de/pke/lane-formation

Residual gas entering high density hydrogen plasma: rarefaction due to rapid heating

The observations illustrate the general significance of rapid molecule heating in high density hydrogen plasma for estimating molecular processes and how this affects Fulcher spectroscopy

Residual gas entering high density hydrogen plasma: rarefaction due to rapid heating

The interaction of background molecular hydrogen with magnetized (0.4&nbsp;T) high density (1–5&nbsp;×&nbsp;10 20 &nbsp;m −3 ) low temperature (∼3&nbsp;eV) hydrogen plasma was inferred from the Fulcher band emission in the linear plasma generator Pilot-PSI. In the plasma center, vibrational temperatures reached 1&nbsp;eV. Rotational temperatures obtained from the Q( v&nbsp;=&nbsp;1) branch were systematically ∼0.1&nbsp;eV lower than the Q( v&nbsp;=&nbsp;0) branch temperatures, which were in the range of 0.4–0.8&nbsp;eV, typically 60% of the translational temperature (determined from the width of the same spectral lines). The latter is attributed to preferential excitation of translational degrees of freedom in collisions with ions on the timescale of their in-plasma residence time. Doppler shifts revealed co-rotation of the molecules with the plasma at an angular velocity an order of magnitude lower, confirming that the Fulcher emission connects to background molecules. A simple model estimated a factor of 90 rarefaction of the molecular density at the center of the plasma column compared to the residual gas density. Temperature and density information was combined to conclude that ion-conversion molecular assisted recombination dominates plasma recombination at a rate of 1&nbsp;×&nbsp;10 −15&nbsp;m 3&nbsp;s −1 . The observations illustrate the general significance of rapid molecule heating in high density hydrogen plasma for estimating molecular processes and how this affects Fulcher spectroscopy.</p

Network analysis of the Viking Age in Ireland as portrayed in Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh

Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh (‘The War of the Gaedhil with the Gaill’) is a medieval Irish text, telling how an army under the leadership of Brian Boru challenged Viking invaders and their allies in Ireland, culminating with the Battle of Clontarf in 1014. Brian’s victory is widely remembered for breaking Viking power in Ireland, although much modern scholarship disputes traditional perceptions. Instead of an international conflict between Irish and Viking, interpretations based on revisionist scholarship consider it a domestic feud or civil war. Counterrevisionists challenge this view and a long-standing and lively debate continues. Here, we introduce quantitative measures to the discussions.We present statistical analyses of network data embedded in the text to position its sets of interactions on a spectrum from the domestic to the international. This delivers a picture that lies between antipodal traditional and revisionist extremes; hostilities recorded in the text are mostly between Irish and Viking—but internal conflict forms a significant proportion of the negative interactions too