We describe the first observation of a void closure in complex plasma experiments under microgravity conditions performed with the Plasma-Kristall (PKE-Nefedov) facility on board the International Space Station. The void—a grain-free region in the central part of the discharge where the complex plasma is generated—has been formed under most of the plasma conditions and thought to be an inevitable effect. However, we demonstrate in this Letter that an appropriate tune of the discharge parameters allows the void to close. This experimental achievement along with its theoretical interpretation opens new perspectives in engineering new experiments with large quasi-isotropic void-free complex plasma clouds in microgravity conditions.

• Received 12 February 2007

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.98.265006