Mass changes of microparticles in a plasma observed by a phase-resolved resonance method

The influence of a plasma environment on melamine formaldehyde particles is studied. High-precision measurements of the vertical confinement frequency with a phase-resolved resonance method indicate that the particle mass is affected in two ways: the deposition of sputtered material at the particle leads to a mass gain, whereas the outgassing of water causes a mass loss. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3556677]