Cyclic phase transition of substrate-modulated two-dimensional dusty plasma driven by gyroscopic forces

Langevin dynamical simulations are performed to investigate the formation of clusters and voids of a two-dimensional periodic substrate (2DPS)-modulated two-dimensional dusty plasma (2DDP) driven by a gyroscopic force. It is discovered that, as the frequency of the gyroscopic force decreases gradually, the substrate-modulated 2DDP undergoes the cyclic transition between the ordered cluster and void phases. Between the observed ordered cluster and void phases, the studied 2DDP exhibits a more uniform arrangement of particles. The discovered cyclic transition is attributed to the symmetry of the time-averaged potential landscape induced by the 2DPS in the reference frame of the moving particle, as confirmed by superimposing the particle locations on the effective potential landscape under various conditions.. Authors: Xu, Ao [Soochow University, Suzhou (China)]; Reichhardt, Charles [Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)] (ORCID:000000020193189X); Reichhardt, Cynthia Jane O. [Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)] (ORCID:0000000234875089); Feng, Yan [Soochow University, Suzhou (China)] (ORCID:0000000319045498). DOE Contract: 89233218CNA000001. Subjects: 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; Dusty or complex plasma; Material Science; Plasma crystals; Strongly-coupled plasmas