Invited Paper SE+PS-WeA7
Cold Atmospheric Plasma Sources for Treatment of Cell-Containing Surfaces

Wednesday, November 2, 2011, 4:00 pm, Room 104

Low-temperature gas discharges generated at atmospheric pressure, commonly known as cold atmospheric plasmas, are a relatively new member of the processing plasma family. Without the need for a vacuum chamber, they offer a much more cost-effective route to material processing and open up opportunities for chamber-less processes and vacuum-incompatible materials such as moist objects. With a mean electron energy at a few eV and a gas temperature close to room temperature, cold atmospheric plasmas are ideally placed for effective chemical dissociation and hence for a wide range of materials processing applications. In this contribution, a review of the current cold atmospheric plasma sources will be presented in terms of their underpinning science and their current technology capability. These include the traditional dielectric barrier discharges, radio-frequency glow discharges, and cold atmospheric plasma jets and jet arrays. Through discussion of their plasma characteristics, their applications are exemplified through treatment of cell-containing surfaces, including living tissues. The interaction of cold atmospheric plasmas with individual microorganisms and indeed microbial communities will be discussed, and its implications to treatment of skin diseases and wounds will be presented. This will also be supported with data of plasma interaction with mammalian cells.