Argon Plasma

Argon plasma can be used for surface modifications in Thierry’s  plasma technology systems. Argon is a chemically inert noble gas, meaning it will form very few or no chemical compounds.  Argon plasma can be generated in one of our low-pressure vacuum chambers and is used for  plasma cleaning,  surface activation and  reactive ion etching.

Argon Plasma Role in Micro-Sandblasting

As opposed to Oxygen (O2 plasma) and Hydrogen ( H2 plasma),  Argon (Ar plasma) is a non-reactive gas. Despite its chemically inert attributes, the very heavy ions that are created from the generation of  Argon plasma are capable of barraging surfaces and dislodging impurities on the material, allowing it to comprehensively clean surfaces down to the molecular level.  Argon plasma does not react with a surface, instead it leaves behind a layer of highly reactive radical sites that are extremely conducive to increasing the surface’s adhesion capabilities. This process of using  Argon plasma for surface treatments is often referred to as micro-sandblasting.