Collaborative Research: ECLIPSE: Physical and Chemical Insights into Particle-Plasma Interactions in Dusty Plasma using Optical Trapping and Multi-Fold Laser Diagnostics

This award supports a collaborative project between Mississippi State University and Auburn University to develop a novel method to trap and control dust particles in a low temperature plasma. Low temperature plasmas are partially ionized gases, comprising of electrons, ions and neutral molecules. Small solid particles, or dust, introduced in a low temperature plasma can get charged and become suspended against the force of gravity. Dusty plasmas are common in space, such as tails of comets and the rings of Saturn, and in the semiconductor industry, where dusty plasmas can form during manufacturing of computer chips. Control of floating and moving dust is a challenge for both fundamental plasma physics studies and the industrial applications. This collaborative project allows the development of a novel method to trap dust particles in plasmas by combining cutting-edge optical and laser diagnostic techniques at Mississippi State University with advanced dusty plasma systems at Auburn University. The project also provides opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students from historically excluded communities to obtain hands-on plasma science experience geared toward industrial applications. This collaborative project will address one of the key challenges in the field of dusty plasmas: “Tuning of plasma - dust grain interactions for precision control of trajectories and growth of nanometer and micrometer size particles” as stated in the 2020 Decadal Assessment of Plasma Science. A novel optical trapping technology will be designed to actively pin down single dust particles in the plasma and to transport them in a controlled way anywhere in the device. In addition, multifold laser diagnostic techniques will be used to measure the impacted plasma parameters resulting from physical and chemical processes, thus aiding understanding of particle-plasma interactions, particle charging behavior, and particle growth in a reactive dusty plasma at the microscopic level. The single-particle dusty plasma diagnostic techniques developed in this project can be readily adopted to other dusty plasmas such as magnetized dusty plasma, and for plasma fabrication and control in the industry. The synergy of the expertise of the collaborating research groups both enables fundamental dusty plasma research at a deeper level with unprecedented precision, and provides a new platform to grow future workforce in laser-based diagnostics and plasma physics at two NSF EPSCoR jurisdictions. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.