工质对射频放电模式转换特性的影响

doi:10.7527/S1000-6893.2025.32732

Abstract

Abstract:

Radio-frequency plasma thrusters， as a type of electrode-less electric thruster， represent a preferred thruster solution for the long-duration operation of air-breathing electric propulsion systems in very low Earth orbits. However， ambient parameters significantly influence the radio-frequency discharge modes and the transition characteristics， which directly determine the thruster’s operational stability under a wide range of conditions. We employed test diagnostic apparatus such as Langmuir probes and optical emission spectroscopy to measure the variations of plasma density and spectral intensity with radio-frequency power under different working conditions， including propellant type， mixture ratio， and flow rate. The influence of the propellant on the transition characteristics of radio-frequency discharge modes was subsequently analyzed. For argon， the discharge mode transition from capacitively coupled plasma to inductively coupled plasma occurs at 300 W， accompanied by consistent jumps in plasma density and spectral intensity. Due to its higher ionization energy， the required radio-frequency power threshold for discharge mode transition is significantly higher for nitrogen than for oxygen. In nitrogen-oxygen mixtures， an increased oxygen proportion reduces the transition threshold； however， a high oxygen fraction can facilitate the formation of negative ions due to its electronegativity， thereby suppressing the free electron density. The threshold of radio-frequency power for mode transition increases with the increase of gas flow rate， driven by the reduced gas residence time， the heightened electron-neutral collision frequency， and the consequent decline in ionization efficiency. The results provide important test evidence for elucidating the characteristics of radio-frequency plasma discharge mode transitions and for optimizing the operational parameters of radio-frequency plasma thrusters under wide-range conditions.

Key words: radio-frequency plasma, nitrogen-oxygen mixed gas, discharge mode, Langmuir probe, optical emission spectroscopy

CLC Number:

V439⁺.2

Yu ZHANG, Tao FANG, Chenwen WANG, Peng ZHENG, Jianjun WU, Yuxuan ZHONG. Influence of propellant on radio-frequency discharge modes transition characteristics[J]. Acta Aeronautica et Astronautica Sinica, 2026, 47(8): 132732.

Figures/Tables 10

Fig.1

Fig.2

Fig.3

Fig.4

Fig.5

Table 1

Comparison between electron temperature calibrated by spectral line intensity ratio method and that by probe measurements

P_RF/W	I₈₁₁	I₇₅₀	I₈₁₁/I₇₅₀	$T e O E S$ /eV	$T e L P$ /eV
100	212.00	91.00	2.329 7	3.054	5.021
150	450.81	268.81	1.677 5	3.637	5.003
200	1 114.06	802.06	1.388 9	4.114	5.447
250	2 058.44	1 290.44	1.595 1	3.881	5.895
300	2 257.25	1 472.25	1.533 2	3.972	5.790
350	2 079.50	1 413.50	1.471 2	4.078	5.664
400	2 660.69	2 044.69	1.301 3	4.313	5.832
450	2 864.12	2 157.12	1.327 8	4.129	5.780
500	2 962.88	2 320.88	1.276 6	4.331	5.719
550	3 222.25	2 571.25	1.253 2	4.552	5.377
600	3 239.94	2 668.94	1.214 0	4.791	5.604
650	3 327.62	2 709.62	1.228 1	4.675	5.641
700	3 377.31	2 776.31	1.216 5	4.808	5.622
750	3 611.12	3 053.12	1.182 8	5.012	5.570
800	3 631.62	3 033.62	1.197 1	4.973	5.553
850	3 624.19	3 088.19	1.173 6	5.066	5.503
900	3 838.38	3 228.38	1.189 0	4.989	5.737
950	3 908.88	3 392.88	1.152 1	5.141	5.783
1 000	4 086.75	3 478.75	1.174 8	5.071	5.606

Table 1

Fig.6

Table 2

Fig.7

Fig.8

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波长/nm	跃迁	Δν
525~565	B³Π_g→ A³Σ_u⁺	-5
565~610	B³Π_g→ A³Σ_u⁺	-4
610~690	B³Π_g→ A³Σ_u⁺	-3
690~780	B³Π_g→ A³Σ_u⁺	-2
780~900	B³Π_g→ A³Σ_u⁺	-1

Influence of propellant on radio-frequency discharge modes transition characteristics

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