Fireball ejection from molten hot-spot by reversed microwave drill

Summary form only given. This paper presents and discusses the phenomenon of fireball ejection from hot spots in solid materials to the atmosphere. The hot spot is created in a substrate material (silicon, germanium, glass, ceramics, basalt, etc.) by the microwave drill mechanism in a reversed mode. A vaporized drop evolves from the molten hot-spot, and is blown up to form a stable fireball buoyant in the air. The paper presents the experimental setup and results. Our observations of fireball ejection from silicate hotspots are referred to the Abrahamson and Dinniss' theory suggesting a mechanism for ball lightning initiation in nature. The fireballs observed in our experiments tend to absorb the available microwave power entirely, similarly to the plasmon resonance effect in submicron wavelengths. The experimental method presented here in the microwave regime may contribute to the multidisciplinary effort aimed to resolve the ball-lighting enigma. It may advance also techniques for plasma confinement, lighting, and material processing