Static model for dusts in a plasma

A simple model for charged dusts in plasmas is considered. The interaction of the dusts with the electron-ion plasma background yields a dust-dust int eraction force that is attractive. The latter can hold the dust grains in v arious stable and metastable cluster configurations. The predicted few-dust configurations agree well with the results from an experiment and a molecu lar dynamics simulation. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S1070-664 X(99)02603-8].