Charged Colloidal Structures in Plasmas
Abstract
Recent advances in the study of collective effects and particle motions in colloidal plasma crystals, ordered structures that form in the cathode sheath region of low temperature gaseous discharges, are presented. Plasma collective processes influence the arrangements and vibrations of colloidal "dust" particles in these Coulomb lattice structures. One important effect is the wake potential formation due to ion flow, leading to the vertical alignment of colloidal particles in experiments. Another effect is the influence of the plasma potential on the charge of the particles and their equilibrium positions. The oscillations of colloidal particles in the lattices are strongly affected by collective processes in the ambient plasma, in particular by the wake. Modes associated with vertical vibrations of colloidal particles are identified, and their dispersion characteristics are discussed.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 09, 2000
- Accession Number
- ADA400868
Entities
People
- Neil F. Cramer
- Sergey V. Vladimirov
Organizations
- University of Sydney