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US 12,706,583 B2Granted
Systems and methods for impedance matching in plasma creation at atmospheric pressure
AssigneeSurfx Technologies LLC
InventorThomas Scott Williams
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system comprises a standalone matching network configured to be coupled to a power controller and an atmospheric pressure plasma creation device by way of coaxial cables of arbitrary length. The matching network comprises circuitry to receive electrical power by way of the first coaxial cable, receive a control signal including instructions to tune the impedance by adjusting a magnitude and phase of the electrical power in a way that minimizes impedance in the system; and output the electrical power by way of the second coaxial cable.
Claims20
A system comprising:
- a matching network, where the matching network comprises:
- receiving circuitry to receive magnitude and phase control signals from an RF power source for combined electrical power;
- a variable load capacitor;
- a variable phase capacitor;
- and
- tuning circuitry coupled to the receiving circuitry, the tuning circuitry responsive to the magnitude and the phase control signals to tune an impedance presented to the RF power source:
- wherein the impedance is tuned by independently adjusting each of the variable load capacitor and the variable phase capacitor;
- wherein components of a line voltage related signal collected from the RF power source are rectified to produce the magnitude control signal used to tune the impedance presented to the RF power source.
5 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving, at a matching network, electrical power by way of a first RF cable;
- receiving a magnitude control signal, and a phase control signal;
- tuning, based on the received magnitude control signal and the received phase control signal, an impedance of the electrical power by independently adjusting a variable load capacitor and a variable phase capacitor;
- and
- outputting the electrical power comprising the tuned impedance by way of a second coaxial cable;
- wherein components of a line voltage related signal collected from a RF power source are rectified to produce the magnitude control signal used to tune the impedance of the electrical power.
3 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving, at a detector, combined electrical power comprising both forward power and reflected power in a system that includes an atmospheric pressure plasma creation device configured to operate at atmospheric pressure, the combined electrical power having an impedance;
- converting the combined electrical power into a magnitude DC voltage indicator signal and a phase DC voltage indicator signal;
- calculating, at a processor, instructions to tune the impedance to independently adjust a magnitude and a phase of the combined power;
- sending the instructions via a signaling cable to a matching network;
- and
- tuning the impedance according to the instructions.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.