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Plasma Potential and Langmuir Probe Measurements in the Near-field Plume of the NASA 300M Hall ThrusterIn order to aid in the design of high-power Hall thrusters and provide experimental validation for existing modeling efforts, plasma potential and Langmuir probe measurements were performed in the near-field plume of the NASA 300M Hall thruster. A probe array consisting of a Faraday probe, Langmuir probe, and emissive probe was used to interrogate the plume from approximately 0.1 - 2.0 DT,m downstream of the thruster exit plane at four operating conditions: 300 V, 400 V, and 500 V at 20 kW as well as 300 V at 10 kW. Results show that the acceleration zone and high-temperature region were contained within 0.3 DT,m from the exit plane at all operating conditions. Isothermal lines were shown to strongly follow magnetic field lines in the nearfield, with maximum temperatures ranging from 19 - 27 eV. The electron temperature spatial distribution created large drops in measured floating potentials in front of the magnetic pole surfaces where the plasma density was small, which suggests strong sheaths at these surfaces. The data taken have provided valuable information for future design and modeling validation, and complements ongoing internal measurement efforts on the NASA 300 M.
Document ID
20120018046
Acquisition Source
Glenn Research Center
Document Type
Presentation
Authors
Herman, Daniel A (NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Shastry, Rohit (NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Huang, Wensheng (NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Soulas, George C. (NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
KamHawi, Hani (NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Date Acquired
August 25, 2013
Publication Date
July 29, 2012
Subject Category
Spacecraft Propulsion And Power
Report/Patent Number
E-18459-1
Meeting Information
Meeting: 48th AIA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference and Exhibit
Location: Atlanta, GA
Country: United States
Start Date: July 19, 2012
End Date: August 1, 2012
Sponsors: American Society for Engineering Education, American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc.
Funding Number(s)
WBS: WBS 215133.05.02.03
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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