Characterization of a C12A7 electride plasma-based cathode using different keeper orifice sizes

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

For the operation of electric propulsion systems in space, efficient electron sources are crucial components. Hollow cathodes have been established for many applications since they allow sufficient current ranges at reasonable power requirements and have been proven to operate for several thousands of hours. New approaches are being evaluated to improve these cathodes’ general performance. This publication presents an extended characteristic of a heaterless plasma-based cathode using the emitter material C12A7 electride. The focus is on the relationship between the discharge potential and total discharge power over the discharge current. Furthermore, a characteristic of the discharge performance at lower mass flow rates is presented and discussed. The discharge potential is generally quite constant for a wide range of discharge currents, typical in the range of 30 V and only increases steeply for low discharge current ranges. Successful heaterless ignition and stable operation have been achieved down to 2 sccm krypton flow rate.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number25
Number of pages1
JournalJournal of Electric Propulsion
Volume2
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2023
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85201367048
unpaywall 10.1007/s44205-023-00061-y
Mendeley 11c9b4a5-da10-34ea-a0f5-d8d13e4ba75e
ORCID /0000-0002-7406-7588/work/172571145

Keywords

Keywords

  • C12A7 electride ceramic, Disc-shaped cathode, Discharge characteristic, Heaterless cathode, Keeper orifice size