Two-dimensional modeling of slot-excited surface waves in bounded planar plasmas

The excitation of electromagnetic waves launched by a linear slot antenna in a planar bounded surface wave plasma is modeled and numerically analyzed. For simplicity, a two-dimensional (infinite along x) model is applied. The electromagnetic field distribution, the total field energy and the power reflection coefficient R are computed. All are found to depend critically on the electron density n(e), and the density dependencies qualitatively reproduce the known experimental behavior. In particular, the computed R-n(e) dependencies with sharp minima at some resonance densities result in the experimentally observed [Ghanashev et al.: Jpn. J. Appl, Phys. 36 (1997) 4704] mode jumps and hysteresis loops in the power-density curves. The computational efficiency achieved through the two-dimensional formulation makes the model suitable for use as a part of a self-consistent analysis of the surface-wave plasma source operation.