Make grape plasma in magnetic feild?

[ForumFire]

There are many videos on youtube where people put grapes in the microwave and it turned the grapes into plasma. There are some other videos on youtube where someone made a plasma thruster(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_wwEKp6SGk"), and in the discription said that it needed a magnetic field for it to work. In some of the comments it said that if it where in microwaves it would work too. I was wondering if a grape would turn into plasma if it was in a magnetic field?

 

[Topher925]

I don't have an answer to your question but my intuition tells me that a normal kitchen microwave doesn't have the energy to turn a grape into plasma. I've tried some of these grape experiments with my 1200watt microwave and could never get them to work.

It is possible to create plasma from a gas using electromagnetic fields. That is the method they use for fusion in tokomaks but I doubt you could produce plasma in a microwave but I could be wrong. In the context that the video is referring to, you would actually be making any plasma from the magnetic field itself but just be able to control it. Plasma responds well to electromagnetic fields to due the atoms electrons being stripped.

EDIT: I just watched the video and it doesn't look like any plasma thruster I have ever seen. Looks more like a fluorescent light bulb experiment.

 

[astrokreng]

Thank you for bringing this interesting topic to my attention. The phenomenon of grapes turning into plasma in a microwave is known as "microwave-induced plasma," and it occurs due to the interaction of the microwaves with the ions and electrons in the grape's skin. This effect is not related to the presence of a magnetic field, but rather the specific frequency and intensity of the microwaves.

In the case of the plasma thruster, the magnetic field is used to control and direct the flow of ionized gas, not to induce the plasma itself. Therefore, it is unlikely that a grape would turn into plasma in a magnetic field alone. However, if the grape was exposed to both a magnetic field and microwaves, it is possible that the combined effects could lead to plasma formation.

It is important to note that creating plasma in a controlled and safe manner requires specialized equipment and knowledge. I would not recommend attempting to replicate these experiments without proper training and precautions. Additionally, it is always important to critically evaluate information found on the internet, as not all sources may be reliable or scientifically accurate.

In summary, while a grape may turn into plasma in a microwave, it is unlikely to do so in a magnetic field alone. Further research and experimentation would be needed to determine the effects of combining a magnetic field and microwaves on plasma formation in grapes.