The influence of external magnetic field on the plume of vacuum arc thruster

The vacuum arc thruster (VAT) is considered to be a potential micro-thruster because of its simple structure and high specific impulse. The plume downstream from the cathode spot region of a co-axial type thruster with external magnetic field is analyzed by numerical simulation. Plasma velocity, temperature and density are used to represent the influence of the cathode spot region. When the magnetic field is applied, the plume is significantly...