Performance Evaluation of the T6 Ion Engine

Snyder, John Steven; Goebel, Dan M.; Hofer, Richard R.; Polk, James E.; Wallace, Neil; Simpson, Huw

doi:10.2514/1.57766

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Over the years, the floating emissive probe technique has been used for a number of space applications, including satellite space potential [16], plasma potential measurements in plasma thrusters [7,34,35], etc. Furthermore, by measuring floating potential of a hot emissive and a cold nonemitting probe, it is possible to deduce the electron temperature [3,36,37].…”

Section: A Floating Point With Large Emissionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recommended Practice for Use of Emissive Probes in Electric Propulsion Testing

Sheehan

Raitses

Hershkowitz

et al. 2017

Journal of Propulsion and Power

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This article provides recommended methods for building, operating, and taking plasma potential measurements from electron-emitting probes in electric propulsion devices, including Hall thrusters, gridded ion engines, and others. The two major techniques, the floating point technique and the inflection point technique, are described in detail as well as calibration and error-reduction methods. The major heating methods are described as well as the various considerations for emissive probe construction. Special considerations for electric propulsion plasmas are addressed, including high-energy densities, ion flows, magnetic fields, and potential fluctuations. Recommendations for probe design and operation are provided.

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Section: A Floating Point With Large Emissionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recommended Practice for Use of Emissive Probes in Electric Propulsion Testing

Sheehan

Raitses

Hershkowitz

et al. 2017

Journal of Propulsion and Power

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“…The thrusters can be roughly classified by the plasma production and/or acceleration mechanisms, e.g., DC arcjet (Martinez-Sanchez and Pollard 1998), magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) thrusters (Kuriki and Inutake 1974;Sasoh 1994;Zuin et al 2004), ion gridded thrusters (Snyder et al 2012), and Hall thrusters (Diamant et al 2006). Most of these mature electric propulsion devices include electrodes exposed to the plasmas for plasma production or acceleration, where sputtering due to incident ions to the electrodes or erosion due to spots of electric current induce damages of the electrodes; the lifetime of the propulsion device is actually limited.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Helicon-type radiofrequency plasma thrusters and magnetic plasma nozzles

Takahashi

2019

Rev. Mod. Plasma Phys.

170

111

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Development of electrodeless radiofrequency plasma thrusters, e.g., a helicon thruster, has been one the of challenging topics for future high-power and longlived electric propulsion systems. The concept simply has a radiofrequency plasma production/heating source and a magnetic nozzle, while it seems to include many aspects of physics and engineering issues. The plasma produced inside the source is transported along the magnetic field lines and expands in the magnetic nozzle, where the plasma is spontaneously accelerated into the axial direction along the magnetic nozzle, yielding a generation of the thrust force. Hence, the plasma transport and spontaneous acceleration phenomena in the magnetic nozzle are key issues to improve the performance of the thrusters. Since the thrust is equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to momentum flux exhausted from the system, the direct measurement of the thrust can reveal not only the thruster performance but also fundamental physical quantity of plasma momentum flux. Here studies on fundamental physics relating to the thruster development and the technology for the compact and efficient system are reviewed; the current status of the thruster performance is shown. Finally, a recently proposed future new application of the thruster is also discussed.

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“…The decay in current density with angle is not a uniform exponential or gaussian, as is typically used in some extrapolations (e.g. [6,17]). Instead, it has a series of inflections or "knees" at different angles.…”

Section: B 16m Angular Distributionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Far Field Plume Distribution and Divergence for NEXT: DART Mission

Young

Matlock

Nakles

et al. 2019

AIAA Scitech 2019 Forum

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In support of the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission, laboratory measurements were made on the NEXT ion engine, which will be used for the spacecraft's inspace propulsion [1]. This study revisits a small range of mission-specific 2.7A throttle levels to understand the effect of in-flight flow rate variability, investigate intermediate throttle conditions, and improve measurement methodology. This paper specifically examines the farfield plume divergence and backflow ion flux distribution of the NEXT, while a companion paper examines the charge state distributions.

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Performance Evaluation of the T6 Ion Engine

Cited by 4 publications

References 4 publications

Recommended Practice for Use of Emissive Probes in Electric Propulsion Testing

Recommended Practice for Use of Emissive Probes in Electric Propulsion Testing

Helicon-type radiofrequency plasma thrusters and magnetic plasma nozzles

Far Field Plume Distribution and Divergence for NEXT: DART Mission

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