The microwave plasma mystery 

Man, if there's one thing I've learned during this video (other than the science), it's that Nile really cares about the quality of the video above all else.

What a nice collection of beakers i do hope He won’t have to break them all in the future

“For each run, I didn’t use the same beaker because I didn’t want to damage it by overheating it” Well that comment didn’t age well.

"I think I almost broke my elbow but thankfully it didn't damage the camera at all" is one of my favorite quotes from this channel

Years of experience in spectrometry has taught me that no matter how little sodium you think your sample has, it will always make itself known.

"I was worried the beaker would crack" well that didn't age well

"However, my biggest concern wasn't really safety" --NileRed, 2019

Nile: Chemistry is dangerous, It's important to take safety precautions. Also Nile: However, my biggest concern wasn't really safety

"I think I also almost broke my elbow, but thankfully, it didn't damage the camera at all" this man is a gem

"I didn't want to damage the beaker" Welll got to tell you something.

"I think I almost broke my elbow, but thankfully the camera was fine"

I love everything about this experiment. Microwaves, plasma, EM waves, light spectra analysis, and chemistry all combined into one. More like this please!

Interesting experiments. I recommend to use quartz-based glassware instead of Pyrex glassware to prevent Na plasma generation.

drilling through the microwave safety warning label feels symbolic

You know you're sciencing right when you find yourself drilling holes through safety warnings

"Hey dad, can i borrow your visible light spectrometer?" "Yeah, its in the junk drawer, next to the refractometer."

"...but it apparently didn't have any problems at all" WHAT A LOVELY SET OF BEAKERS NILE, I HOPE NOTHING HAPPENS TO THEM

"Worried it would Crack the beaker but didn't cause any problems at all" lol if only he knew

I once placed a circular fluorescent bulb in our kitchen microwave oven. As expected it illuminated brighter than the usual level. I asked my wife to come take a look. She fled the kitchen. It took a week to convince her the oven is back to normal use only.

Although as you said this project was a bit different than your usual stuff, This video was, as usual, both entertaining and informative. Thank you for the content that you create, and please don't stop anytime soon.

“my first attempt was with forks because i heard it was dangerous to put them in the microwave” nothing can stop this man-

"I almost broke my elbow, but thankfully it didn't damage the camera at all" Lol for the content!

I love the fact that he literally just doesn’t care about his safety nearly as much as he does for his cameras, I love nile

Dude, you had me almost yelling at my phone about the sodium oxide in the glass. I thought that the beaker was one of the main variables that didn't change between each experiment. I've had a number of instances where I was trying to think "what's wrong with how I'm approaching this?" Only to have a friend come up with a solution in 5 seconds, and making me look brain dead 🤦‍♂️. This was an excellent video either way.

"However, my biggest concern wasn't really safety" alright codyslab

Dangerous chemicals , no problem Wet floor, almost takes him out

Its pretty cool that you're doing spectral analysis on a microwave, found a surprising result, and then worked hard to resolve it. There is hope for the future of science afterall!

Thanks for this video! You have saved many of our microwaves from experimenting to see these amazing views, while also helped learning of this phenomenon. Please do more videos like this.

"I always heard forks were dangerous to put in the microwave, so I tried those."

2:43 “All this plasma was incredibly hot, and I was worried that running it for a while would crack the beaker, but it apparently didn't have any problem at all” *“apparently didn't have any problem at all”* Welp, it turns out that there were problems all along. RIP beakers

This is really interesting. I think one of the reasons is your approach from a curious perspective. It's fascinating watching someone go through the mental processes, and asking the pertinent questions, and also, not being afraid to acknowledge one's own mistakes, missteps, or misinterpretations. I get the same kind of enjoyments here as I do watching mustie1. Thanks, and subbed.

absolutely love your videos! you always pose very interesting questions and your dedication to getting the answers to your own questions is inspiring, also found out that timber is treated with sodium silicate as a preservative, the match sticks themselves more than likely were treated with it also

"Don't try this in your own microwave." Got it, will steal the neighbors'

>I nearly broke my elbow >thankfully I didn’t damage the phone much Nile’s priorities are straight

One of the things I like most about you is the way you share all your successes as well as failures, no matter how they may make you look. (we're all human and make mistakes). Anyway point is you take us along for the whole ride from start to finish, all speed bumps included. And thank you for that

Nile, I could feel myself getting depressed. So I took a shower and turned on your video. Its really helping. Thank you so much brother 👍

scientist life priority "I explode the screen of my phone and almost broke my elbow .... but thankfully the camera is OK"

I started this thinking there was no way I was sitting through a 30 minute video on microwave plasma. I was wrong. This is fascinating and you clearly spent a lot of effort on it - awesome! May your days be full of interesting discoveries.

If we had RU-vid and you doing videos like this 40 years ago, I would have my Phd right now. ...Or I would be dead: my mother having arrived home early, found her microwave broken or drilled - and killed me. 🤣 Thanks for yet another phenomenal video!

i love his storytelling skills, he keeps us invested and asking questions along with him before explaining the true nature of what we’re viewing!

A company called Robson scientific (first on Google) does quartz "glassware", contains very little of anything other than SiO2 something like 99.995% and they take orders from individuals ! That could definitely handle the heat, pricey though (Edit: there are cheaper sources: e.g. Amazon which seems to source off celscientific)

"My biggest concern wasnt safety." - NileRed, 2019 Somewhere, somehow, Jamie Heyneman is weeping with joy.

This is one of the prettiest videos I've ever seen. I love all the plasma colors!

This looks like the ball lighting I saw once. It stayed more circular but moved and glowed just like this. Too cool.

“I think I also almost broke my elbow, but thankfully, it didn’t damage the camera at all.” Ah, finally, someone who understands my priorities.

You know this man got some courage when he literally drills a hole right in the middle of a red, shiny, glittery danger warning

Nilered: Begins to explain basic stuff. His hands: Enter epileptic parkinson super mode.

thank you for this well-researched video. I had also been interested in this topic but gave up the research (and trial) attempts due to not knowing if the info i found was legit. You certainly know your chemistry, so I believe you know your microwave plasma. Keep up the good work.

My dad always gets mad when I borrow his visible light spectrometer...

"And I died" NileRed - 2019

@nilered dude I want to say congratulations on doing such a better job at making observations than your peers! I think it’s amazing that the observations you made where quite simple to observe and required minimal scientific knowledge. You didn’t need to have a Dr in front of your name to be able to make these observations and get down to the bottom of them. Personally I did assume that the yellow was from the air or beaker and you did a great job of showing why and measuring it. Also showing that when we saw less yellow in most cases the yellow was not reduced just the other colors had increased! So dude great job! Out of ALL the plasma microwave videos this one was my ABSOLUTE favorite because you did what is taught in middle school! I really feel like so many of my peers are failing at their jobs or life in general because they don’t understand some very simple concepts that they should have learned in middle school. Like making observations or one of the most important things imaginable (correlation doesn’t imply causation). So people like you that get normal people and especially children interested in science are very important to humanities future! People are learning differently! While I learned all the concepts in this video in middle school it must have been because I was interested because my peers and even my brilliant wife do not have a grasp on how to apply this stuff to everyday life in order to improve life and to avoid and solve conflict. You have inspired thousands of people to give this video a thumbs up! Congrat!

Cool video, it actually answered two questions I’ve always had but never had answers for. One regard the spectra of light glow from a burnt match being heated. Another light and sound waves having a correlation. Thanks dude.

Yes, I remember the first time I borrowed my dad's visible light spectrometer. It was such a proud moment for him and a real rite of passage for me. My grandfather wept after we told him. It was quite the family moment.

"...and I DIED when I saw that there was still this massive sodium spike." So relatable.

12:09 This completely contradicts the hypothesis of the Veritasium video as well as the PNAS paper it's based on. Great job!

I commend you for all your efforts, hard work and for your critical thinking! I was delighted with this exciting demonstration of the plasma phenomenon and you application of the scientific method. Well done! You can almost publish a paper with all the experimental results that you have obtained and analized. Which proves that sometimes you dont need a lot of sophisticated instruments to do good science. Keep it going!

Late 2000s RU-vid: Microwave plasma 2019 RU-vid: Microwave plasma but in HD 60FPS and with a lot more science

"I just bought a new phone for a better shot" I wish I could say that, I really do

Im think im gonna do this for my science project thx for the idea and for the explanation it was really clear and im gonna check all the other channel you mention for more detail

Great investigation. So it was simply the sodium from the glass. Very cool. From a chemistry point of view the glass is always inert, but Ben is more of a physics guy. Thanks very much Nile.

I like how his dad has a visible light spectrometer kicking around. Good job!

Convenient, completely inert, and made of SODIUM SILICATES Nile.

First time watching NileRed on my desktop, and I have to say, his gaze is waaaaay to intense for this format.

One thing this video showed me is how important collaboration is. Sometimes you just can't see what others can

NileRed: "almost broke my elbow .... but thankfully the camera was ok".

Out of curiosity, what does your dad do? A visible light spectrometer isn't exactly a piece of standard kit like a multimeter.

Scary stuff @NileRed making me think about Maui fires

@NeilRed: the weired "electric" sound comes as the magnetron itself is pumped by the flank occuring every half-wave from your 60 Herz sinusoidal mains. The effect can be also heared in the transformer hum. The same effect appears everytime when you are making electrical arcs directly driven by a transformer from the mains. In many electric-arc videos on youtube the arc is driven by A high frequency flyback converter what you then clearly can hear in the weird high frequency PWM sound what also can be heared directly in the characteristic coil whine of switched mode power supplies.

1:51 The seriousness in his face while he says "I also thought that it was just a decent excuse to just have fun and play around with plasma"

I made a simple "supercharging" method for an old microwave once.. Simply distancing the tempsensor on the magnetron alittle makes the time needed to heat things decrease alot. Can also make the microwave set itself on fire. I have a new microwave now.

Great video and wonderful demonstration of the scientific method!!

I was just watching the Veritasium video you mentioned and got curios about the fireball. What a legend for already having done a video on it ☠

Your dad just had a visible light spectrometer laying around? Your dad's cooler than my dad 😂

I think the real highlight of this video was being able to watch an egg actually sweat at 26:41 - like Jesus Nile what did you tell it that made it so nervous

I am surprised that you didn't think of the glass! You have done some glasswork, you must have seen the distinct sodium orange? Excellent video, as always 👍

This friggin guy is one of my favorites! Great technique 👌🏼

"And it also made a characteristic sound" MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

12:30 "I borrowed this thing from my dad!" WHY IS YOUR DAD SO COOL?

When researchers analyse liquid samples with mass spectrometry, Na adducts are regularly seen in data due to sample being held in glass sample vial. Lol I was happily guessing Glass as Na source and so happy when tested here. Excellent science videos, I will be suggesting these to my students at the University of Strathclyde :)

i did this at home, worked like a charm! the plasma was very good looking and since i used some sort of kitchen measuring cup and not a beaker i did not get a yellow flame most of the time but a very vivid red one

"However, my biggest concern wasn't safety" is the most badass line I've heard on a science channel

Now imagine a collaboration with SloMo Guys. Plasma at 1000000 fps.

The one rule our parents taught was to never put foil in the microwave and this man has done what they warned us not to

Many microwave ovens use a transformer and a Villard voltage doubler to power the magnetron, so the microwave power varies between zero and full power 50 or 60 times a second, depending on the line frequency. That not only makes the humming/buzzing sound, but probably makes much of the "dance" effect of the plasma confined in a beaker. There are some modern microwave ovens with an inverter power supply for the magnetron providing much smoother power, so the effect might be a bit different.

“My first attempt was with forks, because I was always told it was really dangerous to put them in the microwaves” “It didn’t end up working very well”

I love how he narrated that little part of him slipping as if it was a narration for a quantum physics documentary

very nice work there you sure put alot into your plasma experiments , you have the makings for a future plasma canon and propulsion system , now try putting a powerful neodymium magnet against the front door of the microwave when you have your plasma going see if it deflects it more or moves it in any way

The best 27 minute lesson on systematic error i’ve ever seen bravo

Nile: And it makes a characteristic sound Also Nile: *doesn't show the sound*

"..and I died when I saw that there was still this massive sodium spike. Now at this point, I was dead"

Thanks for sharing this great DIY science. You solved several problems on the way to solving the colour mystery. Those answers help others better understand how to do microwave plasma research on a tight budget. Understanding hot spots, protecting the oven, recording observations. Physicists have spent trillions of dollars researching plasma and trying to contain it. Perhaps if they had been given a micro budget and a few microwaves they would be much closer to understanding sustainable plasma containment than they currently are. The next step could be to modify the oven cavity to obtain a stable standing wave with a small volume experiencing intense constructive interference. I am sure that would be very dangerous and don't recommend anyone doing it outside a shielded safe space. I have seen that there are some research papers on computer modelling microwave cavities for the purpose of chemistry and CVD, so hopefully we might see mini microwave fusion reactors which actually produce useful power even before giant fusion reactors work. Or perhaps, someone can explain what the challenges would be to produce a mini microwave plasma based nuclear reactor? And finally you showed how useful it is to collaborate with others when you thought you couldn't find the source of the sodium ions: It forced you to share ideas with others and their insights helped you to complete the investigation. Therefore, you demonstrated *the importance of collaborative problem solving*.

Indium tin oxide coated glass might have worked for this as it is transparent in visible wavelengths but blocks IR and is conductive to block RF. ITO coated Pyrex would probably be ideal.

Older microwave ovens didn't use the turntable. They had a spinning reflector near the magnetron antenna to scatter the microwaves around.

2:44 "I was worried that running it for a while would crack the beaker" Shoulda been more worried

Very interesting video! Plasma is an amazing phenomena.

thanks for the beautiful informative video man. plz keep going

SO NileRed, i have a mystery i discovered about 10 years ago, where tree and root nuts will glow green in the dark for a few seconds, with phosphorescence when exposed to a bright UV source, the glow is best demonstrated with a jar of skippy smooth peanut butter, a UV laser or UV LED flashlight and a dark room other nuts that work, peanuts, cashews, almonds and walnuts all demonstrate phosphorescence however peanut butter does the best i also tried this with peanut ,sesame, coconut and olive oils, but it does not do anything. i submitted this question to a BBC podcast many years ago called the naked scientists, and thats the ONLY answers i got, or could find on the internet at the time what part of the nut does this? and is it possible to extract this compound?

"I stopped the beaker from rotating to get a better shot" "it turns out rotation was nessacary, which I expected to be the case" Sure Nilered. Sure you did.

oh boy, what lovely beakers. They seem very good quality and suck must be expensive to withstand so many chemical experiments

It stopped working because you can see there is more of a seal between the beakers opening and the glass dish which means the flame burned away all the oxygen. When the beaker is placed on the flat side you have a small hole where the pouring spout is located so the oxygen isn;t being burned away.