The Plasma State

Abstract

The plasma state is frequently referred to as the fourth state of matter in the sequence: solid, liquid, gas, and plasma. This classification as a state of matter is justified by the fact that more than 99% of the known universe is in the plasma state. A typical example is the sun, whose interior temperatures exceed 107 K. The high energy content of a plasma compared to that of solids, liquids, or ordinary gases lends itself to a number of important applications.