[Table of Contents]

Plasma and Fusion Research

Volume 9, 3406125 (2014)

Regular Articles


Optical Measurements of High-Density Helicon Plasma by Using a High-Speed Camera and Monochromators
Shimpei WASEDA, Hiroaki FUJITSUKA, Shunjiro SHINOHARA, Daisuke KUWAHARA, Marie SAKATA and Hiroshi AKATSUKA1)
Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 2-24-16 Naka-Cho, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8588, Japan
1)
Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 Ookayama, Meguro, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan
(Received 18 November 2013 / Accepted 30 May 2014 / Published 29 July 2014)

Abstract

Electric propulsion is an established high-efficiency method in deep space explorers. However, most of the applied methods feature electrodes in direct contact with the plasma, thus its lifetime is limited by the electrodes' erosion. We developed electrodeless electric propulsion systems in order to overcome this problem, and performed optical measurements to estimate the high-density helicon plasma performance of the systems. The electron and neutral particle density profiles were measured by a high-speed camera, and the velocity of the singly-charged Ar ions was determined by a high-resolution monochromator. Additionally, a preliminary experiment of a spectroscopic method using an intensity ratio based on a collisional radiative model with a CCD monochromator was performed. The plasma parameters were in good agreement with the results obtained by an electrostatic probe, and the non-invasive optical measurements presented here can constitute an effective tool for evaluating an electric propulsion system.


Keywords

electric propulsion, helicon plasma, high-speed camera, monochromator, spectroscopy, intensity ratio, collisional radiative model

DOI: 10.1585/pfr.9.3406125


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This paper may be cited as follows:

Shimpei WASEDA, Hiroaki FUJITSUKA, Shunjiro SHINOHARA, Daisuke KUWAHARA, Marie SAKATA and Hiroshi AKATSUKA, Plasma Fusion Res. 9, 3406125 (2014).