Stable plasma ring created in open air for the first time

[Swordsmyth]

Plasma is created when an ionized gas is electrically charged, and being gaseous, it normally doesn't have a set shape. When made artificially, it's usually constrained in vacuum chambers or electromagnetic fields, but previous work has generated plasma rings in the open air for up to 10 milliseconds at a time. The Caltech team managed to create rings that lasted indefinitely, as long as a power source is maintained.

"We were told by some colleagues this wasn't even possible," says Francisco Pereira, co-author of the study. "But we can create a stable ring and maintain it for as long as we want, no vacuum or magnetic field or anything."

More at: https://newatlas.com/plasma-ring-open-air/52174/

[timosman]

The rings have a diameter of a few dozen microns and are visible under a microscope.

While the technique is more curiosity than commercial

M'kay.

[ClaytonB]

Plasma is created when an ionized gas is electrically charged, and being gaseous, it normally doesn't have a set shape. When made artificially, it's usually constrained in vacuum chambers or electromagnetic fields, but previous work has generated plasma rings in the open air for up to 10 milliseconds at a time. The Caltech team managed to create rings that lasted indefinitely, as long as a power source is maintained.

"We were told by some colleagues this wasn't even possible," says Francisco Pereira, co-author of the study. "But we can create a stable ring and maintain it for as long as we want, no vacuum or magnetic field or anything."

More at: https://newatlas.com/plasma-ring-open-air/52174/

WHOA

In my mind, this goes up there with the discovery of metamaterials. Oh, wait, I forgot, the CERN physicists have almost unlocked the final secret of nature with the Large Hadron Collider.