Single Microparticle Measurement Using an Electrodynamic Balance

Abstract

　The electrodynamic balance (EDB), outgrowth of electrical device of Millikan’s oil drop experiment, uses superposed AC and DC electrical fields to trap a charged microparticle and fix it in space. The EDB has become a widely-employed experimental tool to study the physics and chemistry of particles and droplets ranging in size from less than 200 µm to more than 5 µm in diameter. This review has focused on the measurement principles and the experimental procedures of EDB and touched on the applications of EDB in the measurement of forces acting on the levitated particle.