Plasma Generation by Household Microwave Oven for Surface Modification and Other Emerging Applications

TL;DR

This paper presents a simple, low-cost method to generate plasma using a household microwave, enabling various surface modifications and applications in research and education.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to plasma generation with a microwave, demonstrating its potential for surface treatment and educational use.

Findings

Microwave-generated plasma characterized spectroscopically.

Observed Paschen-like curve suggests a specific generation mechanism.

Effective for surface modification and bonding applications.

Abstract

In this paper we describe a simple and inexpensive method to generate plasma using a kitchen microwave. The microwave-generated plasma is characterized by spectroscopic analysis and compared with the absorption spectra of a gas discharge tube. A Paschen-like curve is observed leading to a hypothesis of the microwave plasma generation mechanism in air. We have also demonstrated that this microwave generated air plasma can be used in a multitude of applications such as: a) surface modification of a substrate to change its wettability; b) surface modification to change electrical/optical properties of a substrate; and c) enhancement of adhesive forces for improved bonding of polymeric microfluidic molds, such as bonding polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) chips to glass covers. These simple techniques of plasma generation and subsequent surface treatment and modification may lead to new opportunities to conduct research not only in advanced labs, but also in undergraduate and even high school research labs.