Observing Pseudowaves in a Multi-Species Plasma using an Antenna/Receiver Setup

Ion bursts known as pseduowaves are created and detected in a low temperature (T$_{e} \quad \approx $ 1eV, n$_{e} \quad \approx $ 10$^{8}$ cm$^{-3})$ plasma confined in a multi-dipole chamber. A negative-going square wave on a gridded antenna (14 cm diameter) is used to launch the pseudowaves in an argon/neon plasma. They are detected by a single-sided plate receiver (3.5 cm diameter) collecting ion saturation current. Results show the ability of this technique to create and observe pseudowaves in a multi-ion species plasma. Application in determining ion concentrations in a multi-ion species plasma is presented.