Typically, the exterior wall of a chamber is grounded for safety reasons when experimenting with radio frequency (RF) power. However, RF current does not flow in a closed loop connected to the ground line on the exterior wall of the chamber because it flows in a path with a small area. Furthermore, if magnetic gradient fields are present around the chamber, they may affect whether the chamber ground is present. Because magnetic gradient fields may be generated by peripheral equipment in a typical experimental environment, analyzing the effect of the chamber ground on peripheral equipment is crucial. However, the study on the effect of chamber grounding on the time variation of peripheral magnetic fields remains open. Through simulations, this study confirms that the RF current does not flow along the ground line, even if the exterior wall of the chamber is grounded. Moreover, safety according to the presence or absence of exterior wall grounding of the chamber is discussed when a magnetic gradient field is generated.

Keywords: Chamber ground, Peripheral magnetic gradient field, Simulation, Safety, Radio frequency current