Two-dimensional microparticle crystals can be formed in the sheath of a gas discharge plasma. Ions from the bulk plasma are accelerated in the sheath electric field, flowing past the grains to create a positive ion wake downstream from the grains. Interaction between the ion wake and neighboring grains creates additional coupling between oscillation modes and can trigger mode-coupling instability (MCI). In order to better understand MCIs, the interaction between dust grains and ion wakes must be understood; however, the relationship between the discharge parameters and ion wake characteristics is unknown. A molecular dynamics simulation of ion dynamics and dust charging is used to self-consistently determine the dust charge and ion wake characteristics for different synthetic experimental conditions. It is found that the ion wake is strongly dependent on the background gas pressure but not affected much by the discharge power.
Dynamical processes in complex plasmas