A light cylinder under horizontal vibration in a cavity filled with a fluid

The behavior of a light cylindrical body of circular cross-section under horizontal vibration in a rectangular cavity filled with a fluid is experimentally investigated. At critical vibration intensity the body is repelled from the upper side of the cavity and takes up a stable suspended position, in which the gravity field is balanced by the vibrational repulsive force, executing longitudinal oscillations. As the vibrations are intensified, the gap between the cylinder and the wall widens. A new form of instability, namely, the excitation of the tangential motion of the body along the vibration axis, is found to exist on the supercritical range. The cylinder is at a finite distance from the upper side of the cavity and the tangential motion is due to the loss of symmetry of the oscillating motion. The transition of the cylinder to the suspended state and its return to the wall, as well as the excitation of the average longitudinal motion and its cessation, occur thresholdwise and have a hysteresis. The body dynamics are studied as a function of the dimensionless vibration frequency.