MAGNETIC NOZZLE DESIGN FOR COAXIAL PLASMA ACCELERATORS

Magnetic nozzles have great potential for improving the efficiency and performance of coaxial plasma accelerators in applications such as sp ace propulsion and advanced manufacturing, Proper design of magnetic f ield geometry can improve coaxial accelerator performance in three way s, First, applied field which intercepts the anode surface without dir ectly connecting the two electrodes can minimize anode fall inefficien cies by improving electron conduction across the anode sheath and by o pposing the Hall-induced starvation effect, Second, a properly designe d magnetic geometry can provide a nozzling mechanism to permit the pla sma to accelerate smoothly and efficiently from sub- to super-magnetos onic flow, Third, a magnetic nozzle provides control over the flow of plasma from the accelerator, For applications such as surface modifica tion and etching, magnetic nozzles can maximize the treatable surface area and tailor the downstream plasma energy distribution, For thrust generation, proper design of a magnetic nozzle can enable efficient de tachment of the plasma from the magnetic field.