Emerging Applications of Vacuum-Arc-Produced Plasma, Ion and Electron Beams

Book excerpt: The NATO-sponsored Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) on "Emerging Applications of Vacuum-Arc-Produced Plasma, Ion and Electron Beams" was held at the Baikal Dunes Resort, Lake Baikal, Russia, on June 24-28, 2002. Participants were from NATO countries Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Turkey and the USA, and from NATO partner countries Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. The goal of the meeting was to bring together researchers involved in novel applications of plasmas and ion/electron beams formed from vacuum arc discharges, especially in less conventional or emerging scientific areas such as new perspectives on vacuum arc phenomena, generation of high charge state metal ions, heavy ion accelerator injection, multi-layer thin film synthesis, biological applications, generation of high-current high-density electron beams, and more. It was our hope that the meeting would engender new research directions and help to establish new collaborations, prompt new thinking for research and technology applications of vacuum arc science, and in general foster development of the field. The Workshop was a great success, as was clearly felt by all of the attendees. The small number of participants at the meeting tended to encourage a high level of closeness and communication between individuals. The location, a small resort on the western side of Lake Baikal in the vicinity of Irkutsk, was ideal - the isolated location, small and quiet, was excellent and was most conducive to discussion among individuals and small groups quite apart from the formal presentations.