A device for generating a fully‐ionized barium plasma column is described. It is similar to the previously described Q1 device except for the substitution of rhenium ionizing surfaces for tungsten, and barium for the alkali metals. The main motivation for the use of barium is that singly‐ionized barium has its resonance lines in the visible wavelength range, and thus allows the use of spectroscopic techniques for the determination of various plasma parameters. The special problems of barium in a Q device, and the spectroscopic techniques, including range of applicability and achievable accuracy of the measurements, are discussed.