# Theory of a cavity around a large floating sphere in complex (dusty) plasma

## TL;DR

This paper develops a theoretical model for the cavity size around a large floating sphere in complex plasma, aligning well with experimental data from space-based plasma experiments, and accounts for ion drag forces with non-linear and collisional effects.

## Contribution

It introduces a detailed theoretical model for cavity size around a large sphere in complex plasma, incorporating ion drag with non-linear and collisional effects, validated against experimental data.

## Key findings

- Model accurately predicts cavity sizes observed experimentally.
- Ion drag force expression accounts for non-linear and collisional effects.
- The model applies to a wide parameter regime for sphere-plasma interactions.

## Abstract

In the last experiment with the PK-3 Plus laboratory onboard the International Space Station, interactions of millimeter-size metallic spheres with a complex plasma were studied~[M. Schwabe {\it et al.}, New J. Phys. {\bf 19}, 103019 (2017)]. Among the phenomena observed was the formation of cavities (regions free of microparticles forming a complex plasma) surrounding the spheres. The size of the cavity is governed by the balance of forces experienced by the microparticles at the cavity edge. In this article we develop a detailed theoretical model describing the cavity size and demonstrate that it agrees well with sizes measured experimentally. The model is based on a simple practical expression for the ion drag force, which is constructed to take into account simultaneously the effects of non-linear ion-particle coupling and ion-neutral collisions. The developed model can be useful for describing interactions between a massive body and surrounding complex plasma in a rather wide parameter regime.