Micro-dynamics of neutral flow induced dusty plasma flow

We present a detailed experimental study of gas flow induced motion of dust particles in a DC glow discharge plasma. The characteristics of the dust dynamics are investigated as a function of the differential gas flow rate, the background neutral pressure, the dust particle size, and the neutral species of the gas. The experiments have been carried out in the table top Dusty Plasma Experimental (DPEx) device in which a plasma is created between a disk shaped anode and a grounded cathode in a Π-shaped Pyrex glass tube. The asymptotic steady state flow velocity of the injected micron sized dust particles is found to increase with an increase in neutral flow velocity and decrease with an increase in the background pressure. Furthermore, this velocity is seen to be independent of the size of the dust particles, but decreases with an increase in the mass of the background gas. A simple theoretical model, based on estimates of the various forces acting on the dust particles, is used to elucidate the role of neutrals in the flow dynamics of the dust particles. Our experiments thus provide a detailed microscopic understanding of some of the past phenomenological observations of dust flows in the DPEx device and can prove useful in future experimental implementations of dust flow experiments.