小型マイクロ波放電型中和器の性能向上に関する研究

抄録

For the improvement of the performance of a miniature microwave discharge neutralizer, the dependencies of the performance of a neutralizer on the microwave frequency, magnetic field strength, antenna length among other factors were investigated. Extracted electron current strongly depends on magnetic field strength and microwave frequency, and the optimal magnetic field depends on the operational condition. Overall, extracted electron current was achieved 19mA at xenon mass flow rate of 5μg/s, incident microwave power of 2W and collector applied voltage of 30V. The demonstrated performance is enough for practical use as a 30W class microwave discharge ion engine for 50kg class satellites.