Plasma systems and methods for generation and use of high-intensity light
AssigneeUniversity of Maryland, College Park
InventorsLiangbing HU, Qian ZHANG, Ji-Cheng ZHAO
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A plasma can be generated using a pair of electrodes spaced apart from each other by a gap along a first direction. At least one of the electrodes can have a plurality of first projecting portions that extend along the first direction toward the other electrode of the pair. The generated plasma can produce light, at least a portion of which can be used in a particular application, such as illumination, manufacturing or fabrication (e.g., sintering, welding, brazing, photolithography, etc.), and deterrence/defense (e.g., blinding). In some embodiments, the light may be high intensity and/or broadband.
Claims20
A method comprising:
- generating a plasma using a pair of electrodes spaced apart from each other by a gap along a first direction, at least one of the pair of electrodes comprising a plurality of first projecting portions that extend along the first direction toward the other electrode of the pair, each electrode comprising a material having a melting temperature of at least 1000 K, the generated plasma producing light;
- and
- using at least a portion of the light.
A system comprising:
- a pair of electrodes spaced apart from each other by a gap along a first direction, at least one of the pair of electrodes comprising a plurality of first projecting portions that extend along the first direction toward the other electrode of the pair, each electrode comprising a material having a melting temperature of at least 1000 K;
- an electrical power source electrically coupled to the pair of electrodes;
- and
- a control system operatively coupled to the electrical power source and configured to control operation thereof, the controller comprising one or more processors and computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the electrical power source to apply voltage between the pair of electrodes such that a plasma is generated,
- wherein the generated plasma produces light and has a temperature in a range of 1,000-10,000 K, inclusive.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.