Experimental levitation of dust grains in a plasma sheath

[1] Dust grains have been observed to levitate above the surface of the Moon and as spokes in Saturn’s rings. In order to gain a better understanding of these observations, we have performed levitation experiments on dust grains in a low-density plasma. Plasma sheath potential profiles, measured by an emissive probe, are used to determine the spatial dependence of the electric force on a grain in the sheath. The observed levitation height agrees with the values calculated using orbital-motion-limited charging theory and force balance equations. Levitating grains were also exposed to an ultraviolet light source to induce photoemission. Three types of dust were investigated: polystyrene divinylbenzene microspheres 10.0 ± 0.5 mm in diameter, glass microballoons <38 mm in diameter, and JSC-1 (lunar regolith simulant) <25 mm in diameter. Our experimental results show that (1) various types and sizes of grains can levitate in a plasma sheath above a conducting surface; (2) levitating grains of a standard size float at a height corresponding to that predicted by theory; (3) exposure to UV light causes the grain levitation height to decrease slightly as a result of less negative charge; and (4) a mechanism to inject grains into the sheath is not necessary if the electric field is sufficiently strong.