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Parametric observations on an atmospheric-pressure plasma sustained in ambient air by an argon discharge excited by 2.45 GHz microwaves in an open-ended dielectric discharge tube are reported. Microwave power, discharge tube dimensions, and argon flow rate were the major operating parameters. Three distinctive plasma regions were observed: plasma filaments exiting from the discharge tube, converging point of these filaments, and a plasma flame. At the filament-converging point, argon atom excitation temperature, rotational temperature, and electron density were measured by optical emission spectroscopy ͑OES͒ in the operating range of ͑3.0-5.0͒ liters per minute of gas flow rate and ͑650-950͒ W of microwave power. The measured excitation temperature and rotational temperature were ͑5000-5800͒ K and ͑2800-3400͒ K, respectively. The electron density obtained by Stark broadening width of the H ␤ line showed (5.0-8.0) ϫ10 14 cm Ϫ3 . It was observed that the volume of the plasma flame and the gas temperature were increased with increasing the microwave power. On the other hand, higher gas flow rates increased the electron density. In the plasma flame, the gas temperature measured by a thermocouple and OES was in the range of ͑1030-2200͒ K, which showed an exponential decrease in the axial direction away from the converging point.

Thermodynamics of a magnetically expanding plasma (magnetic nozzle (MN)) has been investigated considering the existence of confined electrons bouncing back and forth inside a potential well formed by a combination of external magnetic field and self-generating ambipolar electrostatic potential. The properties of confined electrons are distinguished from that of the adiabatically expanding electrons with γ e ≈5/3 by the separate measurement of each species using a double-sided planar Langmuir probe. Relationship between the electron pressure versus electron density averaged over electron energy probability functions (eepfs) clearly reveals that the confined electrons in MN have a nearly isothermal characteristic. Existence of isothermally behaving confined electrons together with adiabatically expanding electrons separates the MN system into two regions with different thermodynamic properties; one is a nearly adiabatic region located near the nozzle throat and the other is nearly isothermal region located far from the nozzle. A transition of electron thermodynamic property along a distance from the nozzle throat can be explained with conservation of magnetic moment of electrons bounced back by ambipolar electrostatic potential. Coexistence of the nearly adiabatic electrons with Maxwellian eepf and the nearly isothermal electrons with high energydepleted eepf makes the overall eepf shape low energy-populated eepf, indicating a need for careful analysis on the measured eepfs near the nozzle throat. In spite of significant contribution of confined electrons to eepf and overall electron thermodynamics, it is found that the confined electrons behaving isothermally do not contribute to the generation of ambipolar electrostatic potential which is important for ion acceleration in MN. The present study suggests that ion acceleration should not be directly inferred from the value of polytropic exponent γ e because thermodynamic property of a MN is influenced by isothermally behaving confined electrons as well as adiabatically expanding electrons.

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