Eric Bland, Discovery News

June 23, 2009 — The world’s smallest plasma torch, a device typically used to rip trash apart at extremely high temperatures, is set to make root canals faster, less painful and reduce the chance of infection.

“Our goal is to guarantee that you won’t have to see a doctor for a follow-up visit,” said Chunqi Jiang, a professor at University of Southern California who helped adapt plasma torches for dentistry and co-author a recent paper in the June issue of Plasma Processes and Polymers.

“One problem is that between 8 and 10 percent of patients have an infection post-operation. This is intended to eliminate the chance of an infection.”

Plasma, or ionized gas, is one of the four basic states of matter, the other three being solid, liquid and gas. Contrary to what we experience on Earth, plasma is by far the most common state of matter in the universe; our sun and other stars are mostly plasma.

Stars create plasma by super-heating atoms and stripping off their electrons. On Earth humans use super-heated plasma to gassify trash, turning last night’s leftovers into syn gas.