Electric thrusters provide high propellant efficiency to give spacecraft the capability of large maneuvers at the cost of a low propellant mass. This project aims to design a compact helicon thruster of an optimized maximum thrust, exhaust velocity, and efficiency on a small scale that can be used for CubeSat applications and other small spacecraft
Faculty Mentor: Werner Dahm
Helicon Plasma Thruster Design Optimization for CubeSat Applications
Analyzing thrust, exhaust velocity and efficiency of a thruster for small spacecraft will allow for optimization help optimize electric propulsion systems.
