Abstract
The operation and performance characterization of a micro Hall thruster is presented. The thruster is co-axial in design, with a 0.5 mm channel width and 4 mm outer diameter. The magnetic circuit includes a SmCo permanent magnet generating approximately 0.7 T at the exit plane and 1 T in the channel. Operation with a hollow cathode neutralizer is achieved in the 10-40 W power range with an anode flow rate of 0.12-0.20 mg/s Xe. The thrust is measured to be in the range of 0.6-1.6 mN for an anode flow rate of 0.17-0.20 mg/s and an applied voltage of 110-275V. Thrust efficiency and the specific impulse are in the range of 10-15 % and 300-850 s, respectively, for the same conditions. Relatively broad ion energy distributions and large beam divergence are observed from an analysis of the plume using a retarding potential analyzer and ion current probe. The thruster exhibits the characteristic “breathing mode” instability in the 35-70 kHz frequency range.
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