Abstract
The acceleration of heavy ions in a Hall thruster is analyzed. The numerical solutions to the 1D hydrodynamic equations that describe the three-component system (neutral particles, electrons, and ions) are obtained. The conditions for the collisionless motion of ions, ion acceleration in the presence of the self-consistent electric field, and electron diffusion across the magnetic field are considered. The self-consistent field is calculated using the Poisson equation. The absence of singularity in the case when the ion velocity coincides with the velocity of ion sound is demonstrated. The critical magnetic field above which the propagation of ion beam is impossible is determined.
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Original Russian Text © A.S. Chikhachev, 2012, published in Radiotekhnika i Elektronika, 2012, Vol. 57, No. 4, pp. 457–461.
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Chikhachev, A.S. Acceleration of heavy ions in a thruster. J. Commun. Technol. Electron. 57, 419–423 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064226912020039
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064226912020039