High-resolution inductive measurement of electrical resistivity and density of electromagnetically levitated liquid metal droplets.

A new device for the inductive measurement of electrical resistivity and density of liquid metals and semiconductors is presented. It is integrated in two electromagnetic levitation facilities operating under microgravity. As a result, the completely noninvasive handling and measuring of the metallic melt enables the extension of the accessible sample temperature range far into the undercooled liquid state below the melting point. The microgravity environment permits the undisturbed joining of the containerless inductive sample handling method by the electromagnetic levitation with the inductive sample measurement technique. The following sections explain in detail the basic principles and the technical realization of the whole measurement apparatus and present experimental data showing its high resolution resulting from the combination of microgravity, electromagnetic levitation, and inductive measurement technique.