Cast design for plasma chamber cooling

Abstract

A plasma generation device has a plasma containment vessel comprising integral cast cooling elements. A casting mold is placed over a foundation, leaving at least one surface of the foundation exposed. At least one cooling tube is then placed over the foundation, and a casting material is then poured into the casting mold over the foundation and the cooling tubes. The foundation portion of the assembly is machined and anodized to become an interior and vacuum surface of a plasma chamber with integral cooling elements.

1 . A plasma generation device having a plasma chamber, the plasma chamber comprising: 
 a metallic chamber wall having an interior surface that confines a plasma and an exterior surface; and    one or more integral cast cooling assemblies formed upon the exterior surface of the chamber wall, the one or more integral cast cooling assemblies comprising at least one cooling device embedded in a casting material disposed conformally to the exterior surface of the chamber wall.    
   
   
       2 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the casting material is a metal alloy.  
   
   
       3 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the at least one cooling device comprises metal tubing.  
   
   
       4 . The device of  claim 3  wherein the metal tubing is copper water piping.  
   
   
       5 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the at least one cooling device is a heat pipe.  
   
   
       6 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the casting material completely surrounds the at least one cooling device.  
   
   
       7 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the at least one cooling device contains a cooling fluid that extracts heat from the chamber wall.  
   
   
       8 . The device of  claim 1  wherein at least one of the one or more integral cast cooling assemblies is a coldplate of the plasma generation device.  
   
   
       9 . The device of  claim 8  wherein electrical components of the plasma generation device are mounted upon the coldplate.  
   
   
       10 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the interior surface of the chamber wall is anodized for protection from the plasma.