New ion source design for ion propulsion application

A new broad beam ion source to be used as an ion thruster for small satellites in orbit maneuvering applications has been developed at the LABEN Proel Tecnologie Division. The source uses an rf electromagnetic field with frequency in the VHF range to generate and sustain the discharge. Preliminary theoretical investigations seem to indicate that the excitation of an e-m resonant cavity mode inside the discharge chamber may be the reason for the high ionization rate found by selecting proper operating conditions of the source.