The influence of anode position and structure on cusped field thruster

Abstract

A cusped field thruster is a kind of electric propulsion device using multi-stage cusped fields to realize plasma discharges and produce thrust. A previous study showed that plasma discharges in this thruster are non-uniform. In this work, a multi-annulus anode is used to measure the radial distribution of anode current density at different anode positions. The experimental results reveal that some electrons may reach the anode along the axis after they accelerate from the final cusp regardless of the anode positions. To further validate this idea and find out the mechanism of this central path along the axis, the central part of the anode is replaced with ceramics. This results in an increase in the total current with larger contributions at larger radii. The current oscillations also get larger. This brief letter is helpful to further understand the movement of electrons in cusped field thrusters and provide guidance on reducing the non-uniform degree of current density.

A xenon collisional-radiative model applicable to electric propulsion devices: II. Kinetics of the 6s, 6p, and 5d states of atoms and ions in Hall thrusters

“…T e , n e , n g , E i , and r refer to the electron temperature (effective value for the Bugrova distribution), electron density, neutral gas density, ion energy, and plasma radius, respectively. Device Position (mm) T e (eV) n e (10 11 cm −3 ) n g (10 region can be studied by using a Langmuir probe (electron density and EEDF), a Faraday probe (ion current), and an RPA (IEDF) like in [70,86]. The gas temperature in the plume region is obtained by simulations considering the CEX effect [81], and then the gas density can be calculated from the measured gauge pressure.…”

Simulation study of the influence of leak electrons on the discharge characteristics of a cusped field thruster

“…These kinds of electrons are called leak electrons. Recent experiments have proved the existence of this new central path [12]. The path of leak electrons is short and less resistive than that of trapped electrons.…”