The plasma levitation of droplets

We show how to levitate a liquid droplet above a plasma. Submitting a conductive droplet to a voltage larger than 50 V, we get a levitation regime that looks like the one obtained with the well-known thermal Leidenfrost effect, except that light is emitted from beneath the droplet. Spectroscopic analysis shows that this light is emitted by a cold and dense plasma and also that lines coming from the cathode plate material are present revealing a local cathodic sputtering effect. We examine the conditions for the levitation to occur and show that the levitation is essentially of thermal origin. Assuming a stationary heat transfer, we present a model that accounts well for the observed levitation conditions. In particular, stable levitation is shown to be possible for thin cathode plates only.