METHOD AND DEVICE FOR ACCELERATING IONS IN HALL CURRENT PLASMA ACCELERATOR Russian patent published in 2003 - IPC

FIELD: plasma engineering; plasma accelerators and electric rocket engines built around them. SUBSTANCE: method and device are designed for manufacturing plasma accelerators and electric rocket engines including closed-electron- drift accelerators (engines) often referred to as Hall-current ones and meant for operation in space conditions for interorbital transport, as well as for orbit correction and space vehicle orientation, and may be found useful for other industries such as electronics for ion cleaning, milling, producing miscellaneous coatings, and for vacuum metallurgy. Plasma accelerator has annular acceleration channel between internal and external walls, center line along working medium flow over annular channel being inclined to accelerator axis through angle β. Channel accommodates anode in its closed-end region. Cathode is placed beyond channel. Collector is made of three collector sections irregularly supplied with working medium in azimuth over self-contained inlets at the same time superimposing heterogeneous azimuthal magnetic field. In addition homogeneous azimuthal magnetic field is superimposed in acceleration zone which deflects direction of magnetic lines of force from usually normal one to channel walls and/or varies its magnitude field and configuration. Magnetic system composed of one internal and one three- section external magnetic subsystems has pole of internal magnetic system and poles of external magnetic system sections, as well as magnetomotive force sources that function to build up magnetic field symmetrical relative to plasma accelerator axis in channel, its maximum being in acceleration zone in vicinity of exit edge and its magnetic lines of force being tilted through angle α. to plane perpendicular to plasma accelerator axis. Internal and external magnetic subsystems have additional magnetomotive force sources made in the form of axisymmetric magnetic coils supplied with power independently of discharge. EFFECT: enhanced capabilities of engine operation control to ensure desired characteristics of thrust vector. 2 cl, 3 dwg