Study on Anomalous Electron Diffusion in the Hall Effect Thruster

Abstract

Over the last two decades, numerous experimental and numerical efforts have examined physical phenomena in plasma discharge devices. The physical mechanisms that govern the anomalous electron diffusion from the cathode to the anode in the Hall Effect Thruster (HET) are not fully understood. This work used 1-D numerical method to improve our understanding and gain insight into the effect of the anomalous electron diffusion in the HET. To this end, numerical solutions are compared with various experimental HET performance measurements and the effects of anomalous electron diffusion are analyzed. The relationships between the anomalous electron diffusion and important parameters of the HET are also studied quantitatively. The work identifies the cathode mass flow rate fraction, radial magnetic field distribution, and discharge voltage as significant factors that affect anomalous electron diffusion. Additionally, the study demonstrates a computational process to determine the radial magnetic field distribution required to achieve specific thruster performance goals.