Microdischarge Arrays on Silicon

Microplasma is becoming a major topic within the plasma community. Microplasma comprise of Micro Hollow Cathode Discharges (MHCD), Microjets, and Dielectric Barrier Discharges (DBD). They can all work at atmospheric pressure and are non-equilibrium plasmas. Among these different types of microdischarges, MHCDs appear as a very promising device configuration to drive DC or AC current through different gases. In this particular reactor, the stable microplasma is confined inside a cavity. Although many configurations of MHCD arrangements have been proposed, but integrated systems involving MHCDs and microelectronics have not yet been presented. The objectives of this published work is to propose different types of silicon micro-reactors made by microfabrication techniques, characterise them by electrical and optical diagnostics and test them in parallel for gas processing. Thus, to provide a better understanding of the physical phenomena related to microdischarge arrays made in silicon.