The propagation properties of electromagnetic (EM) waves in fully ionized dusty plasmas is the subject of this study. The dielectric relationships for EM waves propagating in a fully ionized dusty plasma was derived from the Boltzmann distribution law, taking into consideration the collision and charging effects of the dust grains. The propagation properties of the EM waves in a dusty plasma were numerically calculated and studied. The study results indicated that the dusty grains with an increased radius and charge were more likely to impede the penetration of EM waves. Dust grains with large radii and high charge cause the attenuation of the EM wave in the dusty plasma. The different density of the dust in the plasma appeared to have no obvious effect on the transmission of the EM waves. The propagation of the EM waves in a weakly ionized dusty plasma varies from that in a fully ionized dusty plasma. The results are helpful to analyze the effects of dust in dusty plasmas and also provide a theoretical basis for future studies.

The method of plasma electron spectroscopy (PLES) is further developed for the analysis of impurities of organic molecules and ammonia in this work. In particular, for the first time the PLES method was used to detect the hydrocarbons impurities: alkanes (methane) and alkenes (ethylene), as well as their derivatives alcohols (ethanol), radicals, and ammonia. As the energies of the registered characteristic electrons are different for different chemical compounds, an important advantage of the PLES method is the fact that it allows simultaneous (in one measurement) registration of various impurities. This work presents a prototype of a PLES-gas analyzer based on nonlocal plasma of negative glow of a short glow discharge in helium.

This paper develops a general approach to the derivation of the boundary conditions for hydrodynamic equations for charged and neutral plasma components. It includes both a well-known classical case for pure diffusion and considers the expressions for diffusion and drift together—for an absorbing (neutralizing) wall with partial reflection and the possible emission of plasma components. Some unclear and controversial terms found in the existing literature are clarified. Several examples of applications of the results, which illustrate the properties of boundary conditions for electrons and ions, are calculated and analyzed.

It was shown that the spectrum of Penning electrons in a nonlocal equipotential plasma is associated with the second derivative of their current to a wall electrode (sensor). Analytical calculations are confirmed by experimental studies in a negative glow plasma of short DC glow discharge at moderate and high pressures (up to 150 Torr).

This study aims to improve impurity analysis by plasma electron spectroscopy for organic molecules. Various impurities can be registered simultaneously in one measurement, because the appearance energies of the characteristic Penning electrons vary for different chemical compounds. Herein, experimental studies were conducted on helium with alcohol vapor impurities in a nonlocal negative glow plasma of a short glow micro-discharge with an increase in pressure from 15 Torr to 150 Torr. As a result, plasma electron spectroscopy enables the detection of gas impurities in high-pressure (even at atmospheric) environments, which eliminates the need for expensive and cumbersome gas pumping systems and expands the scope of the method.

The inversion of the electron energy distribution function (EEDF) at low energies and the absolute negative electron conductivity are predicted and confirmed by numerical modeling of a direct current glow discharge in argon. It is shown that, in contrast to the local approximation used earlier for searching the inverse EEDF, in a real gas-discharge plasma, the formation of the EEDF is significantly affected by the terms with spatial gradients in the Boltzmann kinetic equation. In analogy with the inverse population of excited states in lasers, such a medium will amplify electromagnetic waves.