Comment on 'Effects of Magnetic Field Gradient on Ion Beam Current in Cylindrical Hall Ion Source'

摘要

It is argued that the key difference of the cylindrical Hall thruster (CHT) as compared to the end-Hall ion source cannot be exclusively attributed to the magnetic field topology (Tang et al. J. Appl. Phys., 102, 123305 (2007)). With a similar mirror-type topology, the CHT configuration provides the electric field with nearly equipotential magnetic field surfaces and a better suppression of the electron cross-field transport, as compared to both the end-Hall ion source and the cylindrical Hall ion source of Tang et al.