Title: Inhomogeneity parameter in designing an ion trap
Abstract: In designing an ion trap, geometry and rf source should be optimized such that the trap depth is maximized while the ion remain stable. In a quadrupole linear trap, stable parameters $a$ and $q$ are utilized frequently in describing the stability. However, in a surface trap, the trap have to be mapped to the linear quadrupole trap so that $a$ and $q$ can be evaluated. This work explains how to handle them for surface trap designing and how the geometry and rf source affect it. We conclude that the $q$ parameter should be 0.2~0.22 so that the trap is stable.