Study of the Plasma Interference With High-Voltage Electrode Array for Space Power Application

Abstract

Current–voltage characteristics of array electrodes in laboratory plasma have been studied in association with the interaction of high-voltage solar array with the ambient space plasma. An electrode or an array of electrodes distributed on a dielectric material were used to simulate the interconnectors of the solar-array panel in space environment. It has been found that the charging effect and secondary electrons of the dielectric material play an important role in the collection of the electrode current. In the array configuration, the current of each electrode was generally suppressed, as compared with that of single electrode, but a rapid enhancement of the electrode current was observed when the spacing of the electrodes was less than a critical value. These results indicate a possibility that the high-voltage plasma interaction can be suppressed if we select proper dielectric material for the panel and proper distribution of the solar-array voltage.