Space electric propulsion plasmas

Electric thrusters offer the promise of a substantial improvement in performance over that of conventional chemical rockets currently used in space propulsion applications. There are three basically different ways in which electrical power and propellant inputs might be combined to produce thrust: (1) propellant can be heated electrically and then expanded through a nozzle; (2) electromagnetic body forces can be applied to accelerate a plasma to the desired exhaust velocity; or (3) electrostatic body forces can be applied to accelerate charged particles. Electric thrusters are classified in accordance with the mechanism by which they induce thrust as electrothermal, electromagnetic, and electrostatic. The characteristics of plasmas in electric thrusters along these lines are considered. >

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