title: Experimental observation of phase-flip transitions in two inductively coupled glow discharge plasmas.
abstract: We report an experimental observation of a phase-flip transition in the frequency synchronization of two dc glow discharge plasma sources that are coupled in a noninvasive fashion. When the fundamental oscillation frequency of the potential fluctuations of one of the sources is progressively increased, by raising its discharge voltage, a frequency pulling regime is observed, followed by a synchronized regime that shows a frequency jump phenomenon. The jump is associated with a phase-flip transition that takes the synchronized state from an in-phase to an antiphase state. When the process is reversed, the transition takes place at a different frequency, thereby exhibiting a hysteresis effect. A heuristic model, consisting of two van der Pol oscillators that are coupled to each other through a dynamic common medium, eminently captures the essential features of our experimental observations.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Plasma Research, HBNI, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428, India.
authors.forename: Neeraj
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chaubey
authors.affiliation: Institute for Plasma Research, HBNI, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428, India.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mukherjee
authors.affiliation: Institute for Plasma Research, HBNI, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428, India.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sen
authors.affiliation: Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata 70064, India.
authors.forename: A N Sekar
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Iyengar