1924-1928

Plasma

• The fourth state of matter happens when electrons,
• energized enough to escape their atomic nuclei,
• collectively generate electric and magnetic
• fields and become conductive.
• Irving Langmuir studied when thermionic emission
• ionizes a gas in a vacuum tube to change
• the behavior of the gas, and, because
• it reminded him of blood plasma, called it “plasma.”

Plasmas

• Lightning strikes, sprites, and Saint Elmo’s fires
• are glowing plasmas
• from natural electrostatic discharges.
• The solar wind is a plasma
• of electrons, protons, and alpha particles
• that stream through space.
• Polar aurorae are from interactions
• of the earth’s magnetic field
• with solar and magnetospheric plasmas.
• The sun and the stars are luminous
• spheres of plasma.
• Interstellar nebulae are plasma clouds.
• Interplanetary, interstellar,
• and intergalactic spaces
• are permeated with plasmas.
• *
• Fluorescent and neon lights contain plasmas.
• Large TV diplays contain many small plasma cells.
• Arc lamps and arc welders create plasmas.
• Even static electric sparks are plasmas.

Langmuir probe

• Electrons in a plasma
• have a temperature
• and a density, and the plasma
• has an electric potential
• measured with a Langmuir probe,
• bearing in mind that the probe itself
• affects plasma properties.

It doesn’t exist

• It takes a while for reality to set in,
• like almost a thousand years.
• We used to be able to count the cases,
• simple as A, B, C.
• Maybe eventually our senses
• will register it.
• Maybe eventually
• we will all mature in our sensibilities.
• Maybe eventually we will make our lives
• as deliberate as fairy tales.