A microwave plasma equipment and a method of exciting plasma are disclosed. The microwave plasma equipment includes: a plasma reaction device having a cavity in which a base support and a plasma-forming area is provided; a conversion device having gradient electrodes, the gradient electrodes being disposed inside the cavity and configured to generate a gradient electric field in the plasma-forming area; a gas supply device configured to introduce gas into the cavity of the plasma reaction device; and a microwave generating device configured to generate and transmit microwave into the cavity of the plasma reaction device.

A sterilization system having a controllable non-ironing microwave radiation source for providing microwave energy for combining with a gas to produce atmospheric low temperature plasma for sterilizing biological tissue surfaces or the like. A plasma generating region may be contained in a hand held plasma applicator. The system may include an impedance adjustor e.g. integrated in the plasma applicator arranged to set a plasma strike condition and plasma sustain condition. The gas and microwave energy may be transported to a plasma generating region along an integrated cable assembly. The integrated cable assembly may provide a two way gas flow arrangement to permit residual gas to be removed from the surface. Invasive surface plasma treatment is therefore possible. The plasma applicator may have multiple plasma emitters to produce a line or blanket of plasma.

A sterilization system having a controllable non-ionizing microwave radiation source for providing microwave energy for combining with a gas to produce atmospheric low temperature plasma for sterilizing biological tissue surfaces or the like. A plasma generating region may be contained in a hand held plasma applicator. The system may include an impedance adjustor e.g. integrated in the plasma applicator arranged to set a plasma strike condition and plasma sustain condition. The gas and microwave energy may be transported to a plasma generating region along an integrated cable assembly. The Integrated cable assembly may provide a two way gas flow arrangement to permit residual gas to be removed from the surface. Invasive surface plasma treatment is therefore possible. The plasma applicator may have multiple plasma emitters to produce a line or blanket of plasma.

A vacuum processing system for a flexible substrate is provided. The vacuum processing system includes a first chamber adapted for housing a supply roll for providing the flexible substrate; a second chamber adapted for housing a take-up roll for storing the flexible substrate after processing; a substrate transport arrangement including one or more guide rollers for guiding the flexible substrate from the first chamber to the second chamber; a maintenance zone between the first chamber and the second chamber wherein the maintenance zone allows for maintenance access to or of at least one of the first chamber and the second chamber; and a first process chamber for processing the flexible substrate.

Various methods, apparatus, devices and systems are provided for electrically short antennas for efficient broadband transmission. In one example, among others, a system includes a segmentally time-variant antenna and a segment controller that can control conductivity of individual segments of the segmentally time-variant antenna. The conductivity of the individual segments is modulated to allow a pulse to propagate from the proximal end to the distal end of the segmentally time-variant antenna and impede a reflection of the pulse from propagating back to the proximal end of the segmentally time-variant antenna. In another embodiment, a method includes injecting a pulse at a first end of a segmentally time-variant antenna and modulating conductivity of individual segments to allow the pulse to propagate to a second end of the segmentally time-variant antenna and impede a reflection of the pulse from propagating back to the first end.

To provide an electromagnetic wave discharge emission device, a discharger in small size for causing a discharge only by an electromagnetic wave, that can significantly be reduced in length in a longitudinal direction, and configured to emit the electromagnetic wave into a target space based on an output of the supplied electromagnetic wave. The electromagnetic wave discharge emission device comprises an electromagnetic wave oscillator MW configured to oscillate an electromagnetic wave, a controller 2 configured to control the electromagnetic wave oscillator MW, a first substrate 10 provided with a plurality of discharge emission patterns 11 each having a power receiving end 11a on the main surface side, and a second substrate 20 provided with a feed pattern 22 having a power receiving port 21 configured to receive a power of the electromagnetic wave from the electromagnetic wave oscillator MW and a plurality of power feed ends 22a each connected through a via to one of the power receiving ends 11a, a distance on the feed pattern 22 from the power receiving port 21 to each power receiving end 11a of the corresponding discharge emission pattern 11 being equal to one another. Each of the discharge emission patterns 11 is formed in a spiral shape that has at a center thereof the corresponding power receiving end (s) 11a connected to the feed pattern 22 and has a length which corresponds to wavelength of the electromagnetic wavelength supplied to the feed pattern 22.

A microwave spark plug for injecting microwave energy into a combustion chamber of an engine including an elongated housing, including an elongated chamber forming a hollow conductor in an interior of the housing, and including a microwave window arranged at a first end of the chamber in the housing, wherein the microwave window closes the hollow conductor relative to the combustion chamber, wherein the hollow conductor includes a connection element for a high frequency feed conductor at a second end arranged opposite to the microwave window, wherein the connection element includes a high frequency inlet cross section geometry which differs from a high frequency outlet cross section geometry at the microwave window. The microwave sparkplug is configured to be threaded into typical boreholes for sparkplugs and facilitates safe injection of microwave energy into a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine.

A coaxial energy delivery system comprised of a radio frequency power supply as the preferred source of power, electron accelerator system, and electrically conductive tube to be fitted to permit the flow of a gas intended to be energized as a plasma, a point of discharge of the said gas, whether in tubular or columnar form, coincident with the point of emission of the electromagnetic wave, the emission of said electromagnetic wave at said point, utilization of a fraction of the potential energy at that point to form a plasma in such gas flow which plasma forms a conduit or waveguide to insulate and confine the electromagnetic wave in its interior, which is manifested as a visible beam in appearance and thereby directing such coherent electromagnetic wave to a target material to be coupled with such material and impart its energy thereto.

Systems and methods are described herein for generating surface-wave plasmas capable of simultaneously achieving high density with low temperature and planar scalability. A key feature of the invention is reduced damage to objects in contact with the plasma due to the lack of an RF bias; allowing for damage free processing. The preferred embodiment is an all-in-one processing reactor suitable for photovoltaic cell manufacturing, performing saw-damage removal, oxide stripping, deposition, doping and formation of hetero structures. The invention is scalable for atomic-layer deposition, etching, and other surface interaction processes.

The invention concerns a plasma source including a quarter wave antenna (204) located in a cylindrical enclosure (202) provided with an opening (208) opposite the end of the antenna (204). The diameter (d) of the antenna (204) is in the range from one third to one quarter of the inner diameter (d.sub.1) of the enclosure (202). The distance (l) between the end of the antenna (204) and the opening (208) is in the range from to 5/3 of the diameter (d) of the antenna (204).