D-Pace’s UBC PhD Student Stéphane Melanson has developed and tested a hybrid design RF Ion Source at the Auckland, New Zealand, Ion Source Test Facility, and can now achieved 8mA DC H^- reliably, and up to 10mA DC H^- in tantalum coated plasma chamber experiments. The hybrid RF H^- Ion Source uses technology licensed from both TRIUMF and the University of Jyväskylä.

D-Pace has been studying the effect of the tantalum coating left on the plasma chamber walls by the filament version of the ion source. Close to 10mA can be extracted from the RF ion source with a fresh tantalum coat on the plasma chamber!

Some advantages of the RF version of the H^- Ion Source are:

• No contamination from filaments.
• No filaments to replace.
• Easier to pulse.

D-Pace sells this ion source as the 7.5mA class H^- RF Ion Source. It is available as a turnkey system or as hardware only. See product page here.

Information on the Ion Source Test Facility (ISTF) can be found here.