Description of the argon-excited levels in a radio-frequency and direct current glow discharge

A model to calculate the behavior of the excited argon levels, including the metastable levels, is developed for a glow discharge and applied to both the direct current and radio-frequency mode. Typical results are the level populations of these levels. as well as the relative contributions of different production and loss mechanisms. Moreover, the level populations, combined with the Einstein transition probabilities for radiative decay, allow us to calculate optical emission intensities. These results will be presented for both operation modes, and a comparison will be made. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.