Plasma magnetic trap of linear multi-cusp configuration -- a component of the plasma propulsion rocket engine

V. P. Budaev^{1, 2, 3} - S. D. Fedorovich¹ - P. Frick^{1, 4} - M. K. Gubkin¹ - M. V. Lukashevsky¹ - Yu. V. Martynenko^{2, 1} - A. V. Karpov^{2, 1} - A. V. Lazukin¹ - E. A. Shestakov^{2, 1} - E. V. Sviridov¹ - K. A. Rogosin¹ - P. A. Dergachev¹ - E. A. Kuznetsova¹

¹ National Research University "MPEI", Moscow, Russia
² NRC Kurchatov Institute, Moscow, Russia
³ Space Research Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
⁴ Institute of Continuous Media Mechanics, Perm, Russia

Abstract
Results of testing a new plasma linear multi-cusp device developed at the Moscow Power Engineering Institute for studying plasma turbulence, plasma propulsion in electric fields, plasma-wall interaction, and materials (tungsten, molybdenum, steel) exposed to high-energy fluxes of hot stationary plasma are presented. These investigations will provide a basis for deeper understanding of the confinement and dynamics of plasma in such a system, the physics of the plasma-wall interaction in a multi-cusp magnetic trap, the formation of electric fields and the plasma outflow along the magnetic field, which produces the propulsion effect. Stationary helium plasma discharges of 3 hours duration with a plasma density up to 1018 m⁻³, an electron temperature up to 4 eV with a fraction of hot electrons up to 50 eV were generated. Plasma heat loads reached 1 MW/m² when testing a tungsten test sample. The aim of the presented study is to evaluate the prospects for using the linear magnetic trap with a relatively low longitudinal magnetic field (less than 0.01 T) and radial cusps as the component of a stationary propulsion engine with power values up to tens of kilowatts required for interplanetary missions. Figs 8, Refs 15.