\"The objective of this research is to study the formation processes of a pulsed inductive plasma using heavy gases, specifically the coupling of stored capacitive energy into plasma via formation in a theta pinch coil. To aid in this research, the Missouri Plasmoid Experiment Mk. I (and later Mk. II) was created.
In the first paper, the construction of differential magnetic field probes are discussed. The effects of calibration setup on B-dot probes is studied using a Helmholtz coil driven by a vector network analyzer and a pulsed-power system. Calibration in a pulsed-power environment yielded calibration factors at least 9.7% less than the vector network analyzer.
In the second paper, energy deposition into various gases using a pulsed inductive test article is investigated. Experimental data are combined with a series RLC model to quantify the energy loss associated with plasma formation in Argon, Hydrogen, and Xenon at pressures from 10-100 mTorr. Plasma resistance is found to vary from 25.8-51.6 mΩ; and plasma inductance varies from 41.3-47.0 nH. The greatest amount of initial capacitively stored energy that could be transferred to the plasma was 6.4 J (8.1%) of the initial 79.2 ± 0.1 J.
In the third paper, the effects of a DC preionization source on plasma formation energy is studied. The preionization source radial location is found to have negligible impact on plasma formation repeatability while voltage is found to be critical at low pressures. Without preionization, plasma formation was not possible. At 20 mTorr, 0.20 W of power was sufficient to stabilize plasma formation about the first zero-crossing of the discharge current. Increasing power to 1.49 W increased inductively coupled energy by 39%. At 200 mTorr, 4.3 mW was sufficient to produce repeatable plasma properties\"--Abstract, page iv.
","abstract_html":"<p>"The objective of this research is to study the formation processes of a pulsed inductive plasma using heavy gases, specifically the coupling of stored capacitive energy into plasma via formation in a theta pinch coil. To aid in this research, the Missouri Plasmoid Experiment Mk. I (and later Mk. II) was created.</p> <p>In the first paper, the construction of differential magnetic field probes are discussed. The effects of calibration setup on B-dot probes is studied using a Helmholtz coil driven by a vector network analyzer and a pulsed-power system. Calibration in a pulsed-power environment yielded calibration factors at least 9.7% less than the vector network analyzer.</p> <p>In the second paper, energy deposition into various gases using a pulsed inductive test article is investigated. Experimental data are combined with a series RLC model to quantify the energy loss associated with plasma formation in Argon, Hydrogen, and Xenon at pressures from 10-100 mTorr. Plasma resistance is found to vary from 25.8-51.6 mΩ; and plasma inductance varies from 41.3-47.0 nH. The greatest amount of initial capacitively stored energy that could be transferred to the plasma was 6.4 J (8.1%) of the initial 79.2 ± 0.1 J.</p> <p>In the third paper, the effects of a DC preionization source on plasma formation energy is studied. The preionization source radial location is found to have negligible impact on plasma formation repeatability while voltage is found to be critical at low pressures. Without preionization, plasma formation was not possible. At 20 mTorr, 0.20 W of power was sufficient to stabilize plasma formation about the first zero-crossing of the discharge current. Increasing power to 1.49 W increased inductively coupled energy by 39%. At 200 mTorr, 4.3 mW was sufficient to produce repeatable plasma properties"--Abstract, page iv.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Pahl, Ryan Alan"],"institution":"Missouri University of Science and Technology","degree_name":"Ph. D. in Aerospace Engineering","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-02-10T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-02-10T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:19:12Z","subjects":["Pulsed Plasma","Aerospace Engineering"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/2353","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Pahl, Ryan Alan"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2016-02-10T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation - Open Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph. D. in Aerospace Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Missouri University of Science and Technology"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Pulsed Plasma","Aerospace Engineering"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/2353"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["\"The objective of this research is to study the formation processes of a pulsed inductive plasma using heavy gases, specifically the coupling of stored capacitive energy into plasma via formation in a theta pinch coil. To aid in this research, the Missouri Plasmoid Experiment Mk. I (and later Mk. II) was created.
In the first paper, the construction of differential magnetic field probes are discussed. The effects of calibration setup on B-dot probes is studied using a Helmholtz coil driven by a vector network analyzer and a pulsed-power system. Calibration in a pulsed-power environment yielded calibration factors at least 9.7% less than the vector network analyzer.
In the second paper, energy deposition into various gases using a pulsed inductive test article is investigated. Experimental data are combined with a series RLC model to quantify the energy loss associated with plasma formation in Argon, Hydrogen, and Xenon at pressures from 10-100 mTorr. Plasma resistance is found to vary from 25.8-51.6 mΩ; and plasma inductance varies from 41.3-47.0 nH. The greatest amount of initial capacitively stored energy that could be transferred to the plasma was 6.4 J (8.1%) of the initial 79.2 ± 0.1 J.
In the third paper, the effects of a DC preionization source on plasma formation energy is studied. The preionization source radial location is found to have negligible impact on plasma formation repeatability while voltage is found to be critical at low pressures. Without preionization, plasma formation was not possible. At 20 mTorr, 0.20 W of power was sufficient to stabilize plasma formation about the first zero-crossing of the discharge current. Increasing power to 1.49 W increased inductively coupled energy by 39%. At 200 mTorr, 4.3 mW was sufficient to produce repeatable plasma properties\"--Abstract, page iv.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Energy deposition into heavy gas plasma via pulsed inductive theta-pinch"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Pahl, Ryan Alan"],"dc:date.available":["2016-02-10T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["\"The objective of this research is to study the formation processes of a pulsed inductive plasma using heavy gases, specifically the coupling of stored capacitive energy into plasma via formation in a theta pinch coil. To aid in this research, the Missouri Plasmoid Experiment Mk. I (and later Mk. II) was created.
In the first paper, the construction of differential magnetic field probes are discussed. The effects of calibration setup on B-dot probes is studied using a Helmholtz coil driven by a vector network analyzer and a pulsed-power system. Calibration in a pulsed-power environment yielded calibration factors at least 9.7% less than the vector network analyzer.
In the second paper, energy deposition into various gases using a pulsed inductive test article is investigated. Experimental data are combined with a series RLC model to quantify the energy loss associated with plasma formation in Argon, Hydrogen, and Xenon at pressures from 10-100 mTorr. Plasma resistance is found to vary from 25.8-51.6 mΩ; and plasma inductance varies from 41.3-47.0 nH. The greatest amount of initial capacitively stored energy that could be transferred to the plasma was 6.4 J (8.1%) of the initial 79.2 ± 0.1 J.
In the third paper, the effects of a DC preionization source on plasma formation energy is studied. The preionization source radial location is found to have negligible impact on plasma formation repeatability while voltage is found to be critical at low pressures. Without preionization, plasma formation was not possible. At 20 mTorr, 0.20 W of power was sufficient to stabilize plasma formation about the first zero-crossing of the discharge current. Increasing power to 1.49 W increased inductively coupled energy by 39%. At 200 mTorr, 4.3 mW was sufficient to produce repeatable plasma properties\"--Abstract, page iv.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/2353"],"dc:subject":["Pulsed Plasma","Aerospace Engineering"],"dc:title":["Energy deposition into heavy gas plasma via pulsed inductive theta-pinch"],"dc:type":["Dissertation - Open Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph. D. in Aerospace Engineering"],"thesis:institution_name":["Missouri University of Science and Technology"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:19:12Z"}