Spectrograph suitable for the mass and energy analysis of space plasmas over the energy range 0.1–10 keV

摘要

The design and performance of a small, high resolution ion mass–energy spectrograph are described. By utilizing a second‐order double‐focusing field geometry, mass resolution sufficient to separate energetic space plasma ions such as C+, N+, and O+ has been achieved. The instrument responds to ions over a wide range of parameters (0.1–10 keV, 1–200 amu) and has a sufficient sensitivity for rocket or satellite measurements of space plasma ion populations (geometric factor ∼10-4E0 cm2 sr keV). Sample mass spectra are displayed to show the laboratory prototype’s response to artificially generated beams containing a variety of energetic ions. Plans for future development are briefly discussed.