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Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Micro Grids Fabricated For Miniature Ion Thruster, Deborah French, Jesse Taff
Micro Grids Fabricated For Miniature Ion Thruster, Deborah French, Jesse Taff
College of Engineering Poster Presentations
Part of the research at Boise State is a miniaturized plasma propulsion thruster. The purpose of the thruster is to provide the necessary location realignments for small satellites in space. The grid creates an electrostatic field, which extracts plasma ions from an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) source. The ions are propelled toward a collector plate being a second identical grid, which in turn creates the desired thrust. The size and density of the openings in the grid are essential to optimizing the thrust produced. The grid geometry contributes to the ion departure angle (focusing) and the ion transparency. The Stainless …