Levitation in an "almost" electrostatic field
General Physics
2012-10-02 v1
Abstract
It is well known that a charged particle cannot be in stable equilibrium in a purely electrostatic field. The situation is different in a magnetostatic field; consequently, magnetic levitation is possible while electrostatic levitation is not. In this paper, motivated by an analogy with a mechanical system, we show that the addition of a small oscillating electrical field to an otherwise electrostatic configuration leads to the stabilisation of unstable equilibrium points. Therefore, levitation becomes possible in an "almost electrostatic" field.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1210.0504,
title = {Levitation in an "almost" electrostatic field},
author = {E. N. Miranda},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1210.0504},
year = {2012}
}