Surface charges on alumina in vacuum with varying surface roughness and electric field distribution

We investigated the charging characteristics of alumina in vacuum with varying surface roughness, and the electric field distribution. The charging on the alumina surface in vacuum is, in general, strongly influenced by field electron emission (FEE) and secondary electron emission avalanche (SEEA). We varied the surface roughness and the electric field distribution on the alumina surface in order to control the FEE and the SEEA. Under these conditions, we measured the 2-dimensional distribution of surface charging potential on the alumina surface. From the measurement results, we quantitatively discussed charge polarity and charge density on the surface for various types of electric field distributions. Finally, we successfully propose a concept of a charging control technique on the alumina insulator in vacuum for the improvement of electrical insulation performance on the alumina surface.