Jump to content

Vacuum arc thruster

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A vacuum arc thruster (VAT) is a form of electric spacecraft propulsion. It uses a vacuum arc discharge, across an insulator, between two electrodes to produce thrust.[1] A metal plasma is produced from micrometer-size cathodic spots. Thus, whereas the insulator is used as propellant in a pulsed plasma thruster, in a VAT the metallic cathode is consumed as propellant.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Lunn, Jonathan (17 November 2016). "Vacuum Arc Thruster and Method of Operating the Same". WIPO IP Portal. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
[edit]