Lorin S. Matthews

CHARGING OF AGGREGATE GRAINS IN ASTROPHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS

The charging of dust grains in astrophysical environments has been investigated with the assumption that these grains are homogeneous spheres. However, there is evidence which suggests that many grains in astrophysical environments are irregularly shaped aggregates. Recent studies have shown that aggregates acquire higher chargeto-mass ratios due to their complex structures, which in turn may alter their subsequent dynamics and evolution. In this paper, the charging of aggregates is examined including secondary electron emission and photoemission in addition to primary plasma currents. The results show that the equilibrium charge on aggregates can differ markedly from spherical grains with the same mass, but that the charge can be estimated for a given environment based on structural characteristics of the grain. The “small particle effect” due to secondary electron emission is also important for de terming the charge of micron-sized aggregates consisting of nano-sized particles.

Measurement of net electric charge and dipole moment of dust aggregates in a complex plasma

Understanding the agglomeration of dust particles in complex plasmas requires knowledge of basic properties such as the net electrostatic charge and dipole moment of the dust. In this study, dust aggregates are formed from gold-coated mono-disperse spherical melamine-formaldehyde monomers in a radiofrequency (rf) argon discharge plasma. The behavior of observed dust aggregates is analyzed both by studying the particle trajectories and by employing computer models examining three-dimensional structures of aggregates and their interactions and rotations as induced by torques arising from their dipole moments. These allow the basic characteristics of the dust aggregates, such as the electrostatic charge and dipole moment, as well as the external electric field, to be determined. It is shown that the experimental results support the predicted values from computer models for aggregates in these environments.

Slow Plastic Creep of 2D Dusty Plasma Solids

We report complex plasma experiments, assisted by numerical simulations, providing an alternative qualitative link between the macroscopic response of polycrystalline solid matter to small shearing forces and the possible underlying microscopic processes. In the stationary creep regime we have determined the exponents of the shear rate dependence of the shear stress and defect density, being α=1.15±0.1 and β=2.4±0.4, respectively. We show that the formation and rapid glide motion of dislocation pairs in the lattice are dominant processes.

Electrical conductivity of the thermal dusty plasma under the conditions of a hybrid plasma environment simulation facility

We discuss the inductively heated plasma generator (IPG) facility in application to the generation of the thermal dusty plasma formed by the positively charged dust particles and the electrons emitted by them. We develop a theoretical model for the calculation of plasma electrical conductivity under typical conditions of the IPG. We show that the electrical conductivity of dusty plasma is defined by collisions with the neutral gas molecules and by the electron number density. The latter is calculated in the approximations of an ideal and strongly coupled particle system and in the regime of weak and strong screening of the particle charge. The maximum attainable electron number density and corresponding maximum plasma electrical conductivity prove to be independent of the particle emissivity. Analysis of available experiments is performed, in particular, of our recent experiment with plasma formed by the combustion products of a propane–air mixture and the CeO2 particles injected into it. A good correlation between the theory and experimental data points to the adequacy of our approach. Our main conclusion is that a level of the electrical conductivity due to the thermal ionization of the dust particles is sufficiently high to compete with that of the potassium-doped plasmas.

Dust as probe for horizontal field distribution in low pressure gas discharges

Using dust grains as probes in gas discharge plasma is a very promising, but at the same time very challenging method, as the individual external control of dust grains has to be solved. We propose and demonstrate the applicability of the RotoDust experiment, where the well controlled centrifugal force is balanced by the horizontal confinement field in plane electrode argon radio frequency gas discharges. We have reached a resolution of 0.1Vcm −1 for the electric field. This technique is used to verify numerical simulations and to map symmetry properties of the confinement in dusty plasma experiments using a glass box.

Simple method to measure the interaction potential of dielectric grains in a dusty plasma.

A simple minimally perturbative method is introduced which provides the ability to experimentally measure both the radial confining potential and the interaction potential between two individual dust particles, levitated in the sheath of a radio-frequency (RF) argon discharge. In this technique, a single dust particle is dropped into the plasma sheath to interact with a second individual dust particle already situated at the systems equilibrium point, without introducing any external perturbation. The resulting data are analyzed using a method employing a polynomial fit to the particle displacement(s), X(t) , to reduce uncertainty in calculation. Employing this technique, the horizontal confinement is shown to be parabolic over a wide range of pressures and displacements from the equilibrium point. The interaction potential is also measured and shown to be well described by a screened Coulomb potential and to decrease with increasing pressure. Finally, the charge on the particle and the effective dust screening distance are calculated. It is shown for the first time experimentally that the charge on a particle in the sheath of an RF plasma decreases with increasing pressure, in agreement with theoretical predictions. The screening distance also decreases with increasing pressure as expected. This technique can be used for rapid determination of particle parameters in dusty plasma.

Experimental and computational characterization of a modified GEC cell for dusty plasma experiments

A self-consistent fluid model developed for simulations of micro-gravity dusty plasma experiments has for the first time been used to model asymmetric dusty plasma experiments in a modified Gaseous Electronics Conference (GEC) reference cell with gravity. The numerical results are directly compared with experimental data and the experimentally determined dependence of global discharge parameters on the applied driving potential and neutral gas pressure is found to be well matched by the model. The local profiles important for dust particle transport are studied and compared with experimentally determined profiles. The radial forces in the midplane are presented for the different discharge settings. The differences between the results obtained in the modified GEC cell and the results first reported for the original GEC reference cell are pointed out.

Two-dimensional and three-dimensional Coulomb clusters in parabolic traps

We consider the shell structure of Coulomb clusters in an axially symmetric parabolic trap exhibiting a confining potential Uc(ρ,z)=(mω2/2)(ρ2+αz2). Assuming an anisotropic parameter αu2009=u20094 (corresponding to experiments employing a cusp magnetic trap under microgravity conditions), we have calculated cluster configurations for particle numbers Nu2009=u20093 to 30. We have shown that clusters with Nu2009≤u200912 initially remain flat, transitioning to three-dimensional configurations as N increases. For Nu2009=u20098, we have calculated the configurations of minimal potential energy for all values of α and found the points of configuration transitions. For Nu2009=u200913 and 23, we discuss the influence of both the shielding and anisotropic parameter on potential energy, cluster size, and shell structure.

Interaction force in a vertical dust chain inside a glass box

Small number dust particle clusters can be used as probes for plasma diagnostics. The number of dust particles as well as cluster size and shape can be easily controlled employing a glass box placed within a Gaseous Electronics Conference (GEC) rf reference chamber to provide confinement of the dust. The plasma parameters inside this box and within the larger plasma chamber have not yet been adequately defined. Adjusting the rf power alters the plasma conditions causing structural changes of the cluster. This effect can be used to probe the relationship between the rf power and other plasma parameters. This experiment employs the sloshing and breathing modes of small cluster oscillations to examine the relationship between system rf power and the particle charge and plasma screening length inside the glass box. The experimental results provided indicate that both the screening length and dust charge decrease as rf power inside the box increases. The decrease in dust charge as power increases may indicate that ion trapping plays a significant role in the sheath.

Physical interpretation of the spectral approach to delocalization in infinite disordered systems

In this paper we introduce the spectral approach to delocalization in infinite disordered systems and provide a physical interpretation in context of the classical model of Edwards and Thouless. We argue that spectral analysis is an important contribution to localization problems since it avoids issues related to the use of boundary conditions. Applying the method to 2D and 3D numerical simulations with various amount of disorder W shows that delocalization occurs for W<=0.6 in 2D and for W<=5 for 3D.