PLASMA PHYSICS
Plasma, in physics, an electrically conducting medium in
which there are roughly equal numbers of positively and
negatively charged particles, produced when the atoms in a
gas become ionized. It is sometimes referred to as the fourth
state of matter, distinct from the solid, liquid,
and gaseous states.
The negative charge is usually carried by electrons, each of
which has one unit of negative charge. The positive charge
is typically carried by atoms or molecules that are missing
those same electrons.
In some rare but interesting cases, electrons missing from
one type of atom or molecule become attached to another
component, resulting in a plasma containing both positive
and negative ions.
The most extreme case of this type occurs when small but
macroscopic dust particles become charged in a state
referred to as a dusty plasma.
The uniqueness of the plasma state is due to the
importance of electric and magnetic forces that act on a
plasma in addition to such forces as gravity that affect all
forms of matter. Since these electromagnetic forces can act
at large distances, a plasma will act collectively much like
a fluid even when the particles seldom collide with one
another
Nearly all the visible matter in the universe exists in the
plasma state, occurring predominantly in this form in
the Sun and stars and in interplanetary and interstellar
space.
Auroras, lightning, and welding arcs are also plasmas;
plasmas exist in neon and fluorescent tubes, in the crystal
structure of metallic solids, and in many other phenomena
and objects.
The Earth itself is immersed in a tenuous plasma called
the solar wind and is surrounded by a dense plasma called
the ionosphere
A plasma may be produced in the laboratory by heating a
gas to an extremely high temperature, which causes such
vigorous collisions between its atoms and molecules that
electrons are ripped free, yielding the requisite electrons
and ions.
A similar process occurs inside stars. In space the
dominant plasma formation process is photoionization,
wherein photons from sunlight or starlight are absorbed
by an existing gas, causing electrons to be emitted.
Since the Sun and stars shine continuously, virtually all
the matter becomes ionized in such cases, and the plasma
is said to be fully ionized. This need not be the case,
however, for a plasma may be only partially ionized.
A completely ionized hydrogen plasma, consisting solely of
electrons and protons (hydrogen nuclei), is the most
elementary plasma.
Apart from solid-state plasmas, such as those in metallic
crystals, plasmas do not usually occur naturally at the
surface of the Earth. For laboratory experiments and
technological applications, plasmas therefore must be
produced artificially. Because the atoms of such alkalies as
potassium, sodium, and cesium possess low ionization
energies, plasmas may be produced from these by the
direct application of heat at temperatures of about 3,000 K
Natural plasma heating and ionization occur
in analogous ways. In a lightning-induced plasma,
the electric current carried by the stroke heats the
atmosphere in the same manner as in the ohmic heating
technique described above. In solar and stellar plasmas
the heating is internal and caused by nuclear fusion
reactions.
The basic variables useful in the study of plasma are
number densities, temperatures, electric and magnetic
field strengths, and particle velocities.
In the laboratory and in space, both electrostatic
(charged) and magnetic types of sensory devices
called probes help determine the magnitudes of such
variables. With the electrostatic probe, ion densities,
electron and ion temperatures, and electrostatic potential
differences can be determined.
Magnetic fields are used to contain high-density, high-
temperature plasmas because such fields exert pressures
and tensile forces on the plasma.
An equilibrium configuration is reached only when at all
points in the plasma these pressures and tensions exactly
balance the pressure from the motion of the particles.
A well-known example of this is the pinch effect observed
in specially designed equipment. If an external electric
current is imposed on a cylindrically shaped plasma and
flows parallel to the plasma axis, the magnetic forces act
inward and cause the plasma to constrict, or pinch. An
equilibrium condition is reached in which the temperature
is proportional to the square of the electric current. This
result suggests that any temperature may be achieved by
making the electric current sufficiently large, the heating
resulting from currents and compression.
In practice, however, since no plasma can be infinitely
long, serious energy losses occur at the ends of the
cylinder; also, major instabilities develop in such a
simple configuration. Suppression of such instabilities has
been one of the major efforts in laboratory
plasma physics and in the quest to control the nuclear
fusion reaction.
Various types of instabilities can occur in plasma. These
lead to a loss of plasma and a catastrophic decrease in
containment time. The most important of these is
called magnetohydrodynamic instability
Plasma can exist briefly in the lowest regions of the Earth’s
atmosphere. In a lightning stroke an oxygen-nitrogen
plasma is heated at approximately 20,000 K with
an ionization of about 20 percent, similar to that of a
laboratory arc.
Ions are fixed in position at lattice points, and so plasma
behaviour in metals is limited to such phenomena as
plasma oscillations
Considering the origins of plasma physics and the fact that
the universe is little more than a vast sea of plasma, it
is ironic that the only naturally occurring plasmas at the
surface of the Earth besides lightning are those to be found
in ordinary matter
Plasma physics experiments include research on fusion,
laser-plasma interactions, and particle accelerators.
Aneutronic fusion
Experiments that explore how to harness fusion
power without magnetic field coils
Inertial fusion energy
Experiments that study how to create fusion
through lasers or particle beams
National Spherical Torus Experiment
Experiments that study how to achieve practical
fusion energy through magnetic confinement
Lithium Tokamak Experiment-Beta (LTX-β)
Experiments that test how to coat plasma-facing
walls with liquid lithium to maintain plasma heat
Laser-plasma physics
Experiments that study how light interacts with
matter through mathematical models and
simulations
Laser-plasma accelerator group
Experiments that study how to use plasma-based
optics to couple independent laser-plasma
accelerators
Emittance preservation in a plasma-wakefield
accelerator
Experiments that study how to maintain high beam
quality for particle-accelerator applications
