| Applications and properties | Advantages of low-pressure plasma | Disadvantages of low-pressure plasma | Advantages of atmospheric-pressure plasma | Disadvantages of atmospheric-pressure plasma | Advantages of atmospheric plasma corona | Disadvantages of atmospheric plasma corona |
| Plasma generation in general | Plasma is evenly distributed inside a plasma chamber. Chamber volumes can vary from 2 to 12,000 litres. | Complex vacuum technology. In-line plasma treatment applications are limited. | Plasma treatment can be realized directly at the conveyor belt. Suitable for in-line. No vacuum technology required | The plasma treatment track is limited due to the plasma excitation principle (approx. 8-12 mm). More nozzles must be used for the treatment of larger objects | Plasma treatment can be realized directly at the conveyor belt. Suitable for in-line. No vacuum technology required. The plasma treatment width is approximately 60 mm. | Only suitable for non-conductive substrates. Relatively low treatment rate compared with atmospheric-pressure plasma |
| Treatment of metals | Oxidation-sensitive objects can be cleaned with plasma. (e.g. H2 as process gas) | The energy can be coupled to the objects by microwave excitation. This causes overheating of the object. With kHz plasma no overheating is observed | In plasma treatment of aluminium, very thin oxide layers (passivation) can be generated | The plasma cleaning of oxidation-sensitive objects is limited | | Not possible |
| Treatment of polymers/elastomers | Plasma activation of PTFE is possible (etching process). Good plasma processes for elastomer and PTFE seals have been developed and are in use | Some materials (e.g. silicone) require larger pumps to achieve the required process pressure | Pretreatment of "endless" objects is possible (e.g. hoses, cables, etc.). Very short process time | Plasma jet has a temperature of approx. 200-300 °C. Process parameters must be well adapted to the surface to avoid combustion (thin materials) | Pretreatment of "endless" and wide objects (up to 60 mm) is possible | Relatively low treatment rate compared with atmospheric-pressure plasma. The treatment uniformity and the surface energy are somewhat lower in comparison with atmospheric and low-pressure plasma |
| 3-D objects | All objects in the plasma chamber are treated equally. Even cavities can be treated from the inside (e.g. ignition coils, water tanks, etc.) | Not known | Local surface treatment is possible (e.g. adhesive groves) | Elaborate articulated robot technology is required. Gap penetration properties of atmospheric-pressure plasma is limited | Only conditionally suitable | Elaborate articulated robot technology is required. Gap penetration properties of the corona plasma is very limited |
| Bulk material items | Rotary drum method allows uniform plasma treatment of bulk material items. The number and volume of parts may be variable | Only 1/3 of the rotary drum volume is used (recommended) | The objects can be treated directly on the conveyor belt | The objects have to be very accurately positioned on the conveyor belt | The treatment of bulk material items in conjunction with a rotary drum is possible. The parts can be treated directly on a conveyor belt (3-dimensional) | Reduced treatment intensity compared with low-pressure plasma |
| Electronic/semiconductor technology | Plasma treatment of electronic components, circuit boards and semiconductor parts by means of low-pressure plasma is state of the art. | Not known | | Plasma pretreatment of metal or ITO contacts must be implemented immediately before the bonding process (e.g. LCD, TFT and chip production) | Increased temperature of the plasma jet and limited gap penetration properties may limit the use of atmospheric-pressure plasma in the electronics industry | Not suitable due to high voltage potential |
| Coating processes | Production of uniform coatings. Many PECVD and PVD processes have been developed and are applied | Plasma chamber may be contaminated | There are many applications used in industry | There are currently no applications used in industry | | There are currently no applications used in industry |
