Design of a current converter to maximize the power into homogeneous dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) devices

International audienceDielectric Barrier controlled Discharges (DBD) are able to produce low temperature plasmas at atmospheric pressure. DBD are used since a long time for various industrial applications. In the surface treatment industry, even though it is widely used, the reproducibility of the surface treatment process, called corona, is limited due to the type of DBD used, which is a lamentary one. Under specic experimental conditions (frequency and amplitude of the applied voltage, gas type, ) the discharge is homogeneous like low-pressure plasmas. The type of discharge is of great interest for thin lm deposition. However, the treatment time is still too long for an online process. To reduce the treatment time, the discharge power must be increased. In this paper, we show that supplying a homogeneous DBD in nitrogen with a current controlled power source is a better alternative than sinusoidal voltage source. It allows to maximize injected power accurately control the injected power. Such a power converter especially designed for experimental validation purposes is then studied