{"title":"Demonstration of feedback control regulation process for microwave discharge ion thruster in space gravitational wave detection","authors":"Xiang Niu, Hui Liu, Bixin Zhang, Daren Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.asr.2024.08.071","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>High thrust noise limits the application of microwave discharge ion thruster (MDIT) on space gravitational waves (GWs) detection, which needs to be suppressed by a feedback control system. A feedback control experimental platform is established for MDIT choosing microwave power and ion beam current respectively as controlled variable and feedback parameter. Experiments show the feedback control system adjusts screen grid (SG) current by regulating microwave power to compensate for fluctuations of acceleration grid (AG) current, which is mainly because the ability of microwave power to adjust SG current is dramatically stronger than that to adjust AG current. Faced with fluctuations of decreasing flow rate, the feedback control system boosts microwave power to stabilize ion beam current. However, the AG current shows diametrically opposed characteristics for operations with different interception rates under regulation of a feedback control system. Further study shows this phenomenon is the macroscopic reflection of ion trajectories variations on AG current under the function of specific electric field when feedback control system changes the proportions of primary ions and charge exchange (CEX) ions by influencing CEX reaction intensity in the grid system and its downstream region. Analysis of mean free path shows the CEX reaction intensity in the grid system is stronger than that downstream from AG. Therefore, the physical process in the grid system dominates variations of AG current.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50850,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Space Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.8000,"publicationDate":"2024-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Advances in Space Research","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027311772400913X","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
High thrust noise limits the application of microwave discharge ion thruster (MDIT) on space gravitational waves (GWs) detection, which needs to be suppressed by a feedback control system. A feedback control experimental platform is established for MDIT choosing microwave power and ion beam current respectively as controlled variable and feedback parameter. Experiments show the feedback control system adjusts screen grid (SG) current by regulating microwave power to compensate for fluctuations of acceleration grid (AG) current, which is mainly because the ability of microwave power to adjust SG current is dramatically stronger than that to adjust AG current. Faced with fluctuations of decreasing flow rate, the feedback control system boosts microwave power to stabilize ion beam current. However, the AG current shows diametrically opposed characteristics for operations with different interception rates under regulation of a feedback control system. Further study shows this phenomenon is the macroscopic reflection of ion trajectories variations on AG current under the function of specific electric field when feedback control system changes the proportions of primary ions and charge exchange (CEX) ions by influencing CEX reaction intensity in the grid system and its downstream region. Analysis of mean free path shows the CEX reaction intensity in the grid system is stronger than that downstream from AG. Therefore, the physical process in the grid system dominates variations of AG current.
高推力噪声限制了微波放电离子推进器(MDIT)在空间引力波(GWs)探测中的应用,需要通过反馈控制系统加以抑制。本文选择微波功率和离子束电流分别作为受控变量和反馈参数,为 MDIT 建立了反馈控制实验平台。实验表明,反馈控制系统通过调节微波功率来调节屏蔽栅(SG)电流,以补偿加速栅(AG)电流的波动,这主要是因为微波功率调节屏蔽栅电流的能力大大强于调节加速栅电流的能力。面对流量下降的波动,反馈控制系统会增强微波功率以稳定离子束电流。然而,在反馈控制系统的调节下,AG 电流在不同截获率的操作中表现出截然相反的特性。进一步的研究表明,这一现象是反馈控制系统通过影响电网系统及其下游区域的电荷交换(CEX)反应强度来改变原生离子和电荷交换(CEX)离子比例时,离子轨迹变化在特定电场作用下对 AG 电流的宏观反映。对平均自由路径的分析表明,电网系统中的 CEX 反应强度要强于 AG 下游的 CEX 反应强度。因此,网格系统中的物理过程主导着 AG 电流的变化。
期刊介绍:
The COSPAR publication Advances in Space Research (ASR) is an open journal covering all areas of space research including: space studies of the Earth''s surface, meteorology, climate, the Earth-Moon system, planets and small bodies of the solar system, upper atmospheres, ionospheres and magnetospheres of the Earth and planets including reference atmospheres, space plasmas in the solar system, astrophysics from space, materials sciences in space, fundamental physics in space, space debris, space weather, Earth observations of space phenomena, etc.
NB: Please note that manuscripts related to life sciences as related to space are no more accepted for submission to Advances in Space Research. Such manuscripts should now be submitted to the new COSPAR Journal Life Sciences in Space Research (LSSR).
All submissions are reviewed by two scientists in the field. COSPAR is an interdisciplinary scientific organization concerned with the progress of space research on an international scale. Operating under the rules of ICSU, COSPAR ignores political considerations and considers all questions solely from the scientific viewpoint.