Effect of packing solid material on characteristics of helium dielectric barrier discharge at atmospheric pressure

The influence of a solid material (e.g., Al2O3) on the physical characteristics of helium dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) has been investigated in a cylindrical plasma reactor. The helium DBD with the solid packing shows a multiple current-peak effect, which can be ascribed to the enhancement of charge density due to charge deposition on the Al2O3 pellet surface. The combination of plasma and the solid increases both the peak-to-peak voltage and breakdown voltage of the discharge at a fixed input power but decreases the discharge temperature. It is also found that the presence of the solid has a weak effect on the electron temperature and density in the discharge. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3619822]