Instabilities in MPD thruster flows: 2. Investigation of drift and gradient driven instabilities using multi-fluid plasma models

摘要

The investigation of magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) instabilities in connection with the performance of MPD thrusters has received increased attention for several years. A systematic investigation of macroscopic drift and gradient driven instabilities at the Institut fur Raumfahrtsysteme (IRS), carried out since 1987, showed that the occurrence of acoustic wave and space charge instabilities was possible. The calculation of the linear development of instabilities using a three-fluid theory of the plasma flow will be presented. Furthermore, in order to identify the instabilities found in the three-fluid formalism, two-fluid and one-fluid models are investigated and links established. When possible, analytical approximations for the unstable roots of the linear dispersion relation are derived, giving the explicit dependence of the oscillation frequencies and growth rates on the wavevector and the various plasma parameters. [References: 41]