Development and Testing of a microwave-heated plasma thruster

Abstract

At the department of spacecraft at DLR Göttingen a microwave-heated plasma thruster is developed within the Decentralized Energy supplied Electric Propulsion (DEEP) project. The thruster is operated intermittently in combination with a battery and supercapacitor. This allows the use of a battery and solar panel system designed for a lower power on the satellite itself as well as a reduction in overall mass, therefore increasing the available payload mass and power. Due to the intermittent operation, the thruster needs to ignite fast and reliable and consists of an electron-cyclotron-resonance (ECR) discharge in combination with an magnetic nozzle for plasma acceleration. The accelerated plasma is therefore quasi-neutral and no neutralizer is necessary. Erosion of the components exposed to the plasma is minimized. In addition to the thruster, a flow management system (FMS) and power control and distribution unit (PCDU) are developed from commercial off-the-shelf components.