Calculation of ion energy distributions of argon excimer ions generated in helicon plasma

A program is developed to calculate the ion energy distributions (IEDs) of Ar2+ making use of a simplified kinetic model with a combination of Monte Carlo method. Several coefficients are used to realize good match between the calculated and measured results. Some important assumptions are confirmed: argon excimer ions have short lifetime, hence they are formed in a short range before the collecting electrode. The excimer ions that encounter collisions will be discarded because they turn to other ion species after they collide with argon atoms. From the calculated results some plasma parameters such as the cross section or neutral density in discharge could be evaluated.