What is Plasma?
Ice melts and changes to the state of liquid water; water evaporates and turns into water vapour. This pattern of transition between the three states of solid, liquid and gas is familiar but there is another fourth material state. This fourth state is called "plasma".
As more energy is applied to the electrons of a material, the orbits of these electrons widen in a process called "excitation". Electrons that escape are called "free electrons", and the remaining particles are known as "ions". With electrons escaping and ions dancing around, the bond between the electrons and the nucleus is unstable. This chaotic state is called "plasma".
The Northern Lights, or aurora, are caused by the energy in radioactive rays from the sun (solar wind) colliding with electrons in oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere. Free electrons that result from these collisions are then deflected by the earth's magnetic field to create a plasma effect.
For an example closer to home, fluorescent strip lights and neon signs employ "glow discharge plasma". Other examples include high temperature plasma where electrons and ions are completely dissociated as used in material processing. Plasma torches, known as "plasma jets" or "arc plasma" are being widely used in the fields of metal refining and fusion.
Currently, plasma technology is widely used in the field of semi-conductor and data-storage manufacturing, in particular deposition and etching process applications. Similar process applications are found in the manufacture of flat-screen LCD televisions and photovoltaic solar panels.
We can truthfully say that the 21st century is an era when "plasma" will influence our daily lives. At ADTEC Plasma Technology, we are striving to develop the plasma generators that form the source of plasma energy to meet the needs of the wide range of fields that utilize plasma.