Particle-in-cell simulation of a Hall thruster

TLDR

Hall thrusters are widely used as space electric propulsion devices, yet full simulation is hindered by complex plasma phenomena and high computational cost; recent work by Szabo and Taccogna has proposed two methods to simplify and accelerate such simulations. The study analyzes and compares these two acceleration methods and proposes a modified acceleration approach. The authors verify the modified method by simulating how magnetic‑field gradient variations influence plasma parameter distribution within the thruster channel. Numerical results show that the magnetic‑field gradient can significantly shift the ionization region and alter thruster performance.

Abstract

Hall thrusters are widely used as space electric propulsion devices. Due to the complex plasma phenomenon and high computation cost, currently it is difficult to fully simulate the real physical process in Hall thrusters. Recently, Szabo and Taccogna have proposed two different methods to simplify and accelerate the simulation, respectively. In this paper, both these methods of acceleration are analysed and compared, and then a modified method of acceleration is proposed. In order to verify the modified method of acceleration, the influence of magnetic field gradient on plasma parameter distribution in the channel is simulated. The numerical results show that the magnetic field gradient can significantly alter the position of the ionization region and thruster performance.