Experimental investigations of strongly coupled Coulomb systems of diamagnetic dust particles in a magnetic trap under microgravity conditions

Abstract

A series of experiments on the modernized Coulomb crystals setup on board of the International Space Station (ISS) was performed. Formation of a cluster of charged and uncharged particles was observed. Excitation and damping of cluster oscillations, as well as its destruction in the high electric field were investigated. Charges of the particles were evaluated on the basis of their rate of expansion from the cluster. Some conclusions about the cluster structure have been presented.