Novel Source of Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma with Floating Electrode for Dermatology Clinic

A novel source of dielectric barrier discharge(DBD) plasma, with a floating electrode and easily operated for dermatology clinic, was developed. The original work included a safely insulated high voltage electrode and an optimized quartz-disk as the dielectric barrier for discharge current control. The properties of the low temperature plasma, generated by the novel DBD plasma source, were experimentally evaluated and theoretically calculated. The measured results show that the plasma works well in medicine with no harm to human skins and/or tissues. For example, operated at a voltage <5 kV and a power < 0.5 W with an air-gap of 0.5 mm, the discharge current and charge transport were less than 10mA and 50nC, respectively. The calculated results show that at a voltage in 4 ~6 kV with a gap of 1.0 mm, the current through human body (<3.82 mA) is well below the safety limit.