Plasma Sterilization

In still another use for high voltage, researchers have developed a plasma that operates at room temperature. The plasma is generated between a high voltage probe and the surrounding room air. One use envisioned is to sterilize medical instruments. A second use is to kill bacteria, specifically dental.

Generally, plasmas operate at high temperature, and thus are impractical to use on humans. However, these develpments appear promising.

The research paper is in Applied Physics Letters.