Thruster

P5

Photograph of the P5 prior to operation.

Developed
1997

Tested at PEPL
1999 – 2009

Developer
PEPL, AFRL

The University of Michigan and the United States Air Force Research Laboratory have designed and built a 5 kW Hall thruster for research purposes designated the P5. This thruster has a discharge chamber outer diameter of 173 mm and was designed to emulate the characteristics of commercial Hall thrusters. Measurements taken in the LVTF (see AIAA-98-3503) using the thrust stand have shown that this thruster does have performance characteristics comparable to commercial models. This thruster has been utilized for various long term research projects at the University of Michigan.

Photograph of the P5 prior to operation
P5 discharging in PEPL's LVTF

Selected Publications

  • Examination of the Structure and Evolution of Ion Energy Properties of a 5 kW Class Laboratory Hall Effect Thruster at Various Operational Conditions

    Gulczinski, F. S.

    University of Michigan, Ph.D. Dissertation, 1999

  • Considerations on the Role of the Hall Current in a Laboratory-Model Thruster

    Haas, J. M., Gallimore, A. D.

    37th Joint Propulsion Conference, Salt Lake City, UT, AIAA-2001-3507, July 8-11, 2001

  • Low-perturbation Interrogation of the Internal and Near-field Plasma Structure of a Hall Thruster Using a High-Speed Probe Positioning System

    Haas, J. M.

    University of Michigan, Ph.D. Dissertation, 2001

  • Considerations on the Role of the Hall Current in a Laboratory-Model Thruster

    Haas, J. M., and Gallimore, A. D.

    IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol. 30, No. 2, 687-697, April 2002

  • Effects of Facility Backpressure on the Performance and Plume of a Hall Thruster

    Walker, M. L. R

    University of Michigan, Ph.D. Dissertation, 2005