AXIAL STRUCTURE OF SURFACE-WAVE-SUSTAINED DISCHARGES INFLUENCED BY LOCAL PLASMA RESONANCES

The influence of absorption of wave energy in regions of local plasma resonances in inhomogeneous (in the transverse direction) plasmas on t he axial structure of discharges sustained by surface waves is studied analytically. The two regimes of charged-particle loss, namely diffus ion- and recombination-controlled regimes, are considered. First, to e xtract the basic features of the phenomena, the discharge is modelled by a slab configuration and the case of slow surface-wave propagation is investigated. It is shown that it is resonant absorption that deter mines the properties of the discharge in the region towards its end. I n the case of a cylindrical waveguide, which is the real configuration in experiments, the influence of the mechanism of resonant absorption is studied in both regions of fast and slow surface-wave propagation. With respect to the discharge behaviour, these cases correspond respe ctively to the regions at the beginning of the discharge close to the surface-wave launcher and at the discharge end.