HF sustained, DC discharge driven negative ion source with automatic control system

A negative ion source with an automatic control system wherein a low power high frequency discharge is used to sustain a high power low voltage dc discharge in a chamber that magnetically confines the plasma produced. The low power high frequency discharge and the high power low voltage direct current discharge are two discharges along with the gas flow rate which are independently adjusted, automatically, so that the conditions for optimum production of vibationally excited hydrogen molecules consistent with the production of maximum H- output current is obtained and maintained. This chamber is separated by a magnetic filter field from a second chamber which maintains the low temperature plasma in the second chamber necessary for the optimum production of H- ions by the process of dissociative attachment, utilizing the vibrationally excited molecules produced by the first chamber.