Upcoming Event: PhD Dissertation Defense

Development of an Argon CCP Model with Uncertainty Quantification

Juan P. Barberena, Ph.D. Candidate

Abstract

Capacitively-coupled plasmas (CCPs) are widely employed in various applications, including the optimization of plasma reactor performance and as testbeds for the study of non-equilibrium plasma phenomena. Accurate computational simulations of CCPs are critical for capturing the key physical processes within the plasma discharge and providing reliable predictions of the system’s behavior. This dissertation presents a self-consistent, one-dimensional computational model for argon CCP discharges using a fluid approximation. The model incorporates detailed physical phenomena and assesses the uncertainties associated with input parameters and embedded sub-models, an aspect often overlooked in existing literature. Through a validation study against experimental data across a broad range of operating conditions, the study investigates whether these uncertainties account for discrepancies between simulation predictions and experimental observations. The findings provide insights into the sources of model error and contribute to the development of more robust and reliable CCP simulations, advancing the understanding of plasma behavior under a wide range of conditions.

Biography

Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico, I obtained my B. S. in Mechanical Engineering at Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM - Guadalajara campus) in 2018. In 2020, I obtained my M. S. in Aerospace Engineering at UT. Upon finishing my Master's, I joined the PhD program at ASE, with Dr. Raja as my advisor. In 2021, I joined the PSAAP III project at the Oden Institute. As a requisite to the project, I did an internship at Sandia National Laboratories in the Summer of 2023, working with Dr. Brian Bentz on experimental diagnostics of argon CCPs.