Multistage, monolithic ceramic microdischarge device having an active length of ∼0.27 mm

Abstract

A three-stage, multilayer ceramic microdischarge device, having an active length of ∼267 μm and a cylindrical discharge channel 140–150 μm in diameter, has been developed and operated continuously in Ne gas. Stable glow discharges are produced for pressures above 1 atm, operating voltages as low as 137 V (at 800 Torr), and specific power loadings of ∼40 kW cm−3. The V–I characteristics for a fired ceramic structure exhibit a negative resistance, whereas the resistance is positive prior to firing. The manufacturability of the fabrication process as well as the “flow-through” and multistage design of this device make it well suited for the excitation of gas microlasers or the dissociation of toxic or environmentally hazardous gases and vapors.