High-frequency Probing Diagnostic for Hall Current Plasma Thrusters

摘要

High-frequency oscillations (1-100 MHz) in Hall thrusters have apparently eludedsignificant experimental scrutiny. A diagnostic setup, consisting of a single Langmuir probe, a special shielded probe connector-positioner, and an electronic impedance-matching circuit, was successfully built and calibrated. Through simultaneous high-frequency probing of the Hall thruster plasma at multiple locations, high-frequency plasma waves have been identified and characterized for various thruster operating conditions.