The atmospheric fluorocarbon plasma is widely used in surface modification of polymers. Recently, the pulsed microwave Ar/CF4 plasma jet is proved to be a promising atmospheric fluorocarbon plasma source with good performance. In this paper, the discharge characteristics of the pulsed microwave Ar/CF4 plasma jet are studied systematically. The discharge morphologies, ionization processes, optical emission spectra, and electron densities are obtained by a digital camera, an intensified charge coupled device, a fiber spectrometer, and a home-made microwave Rayleigh scattering device, respectively. The influences of the plasma operation parameters on the discharge characteristics are investigated, and the microwave input power and CF4 volume fraction are optimized. The results provide a basis for the generation and surface modification application of high-performance atmospheric fluorocarbon plasma.
