This topical review gathers the last updates concerning caesium-free negative ion sources presented during the 63rd Course of the International school of Quantum Electronics of the Ettore Majorana Foundation and European collaborative works related to these lectures. Hence, beyond the frame of this course this topical review addresses both theoretical and experimental work performed during these last few years and complexities represented by the conception of a negative ion source ranging from the creation of negative ions to their neutralization.

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The electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) negative ion source “Prometheus I” is operated either with high purity H2 (> 99.999%) or D2 (> 99.8%) to probe H- and D- ions, respectively, and examine the isotope effect within a wide range of gas pressure. These ions are predominantly formed in the bulk plasma by dissociative attachment (DA) of low-energy (cold) electrons to highly ro-vibrationally excited molecules. The latter result mainly from the radiative decay and excitation (EV) process sustained by high-energy (hot) electrons heated in the ECR zones. Langmuir probe and laser photo-detachment measurements are realized within the pressure range 0.27 to 2.67 Pa under constant microwave power (0.9 kW). It is revealed that: (i) the plasma potential, cold electron temperature, and cold electron density tend to be higher in deuterium; (ii) no pronounced difference in the hot electron density and temperature is found between the two plasmas; and (iii) overall a similar H- and D- negative ion yield (up to 6×109 cm-3; under the present conditions) is achieved. However, for equal plasma densities an isotope effect is exhibited showing higher H- density over the entire pressure range. Finally, the nH- / n ratio is constantly higher than the nD- / ne one and they both peak around 1.33 Pa.