Numerical Simulation for One Dimensional Steady Quasineutral Hybrid Model of Stationary Plasma Thruster

Based on the analysis of the physical mechanism of the Stationary Plasma Thruster (SPT), an integral equation describing the ion density of the steady SPT and the ion velocity distribution function at an arbitrary axial position of the steady SPT channel are derived. The integral equation is equivalent to the Vlasov equation, but the former is simpler than the latter. A one dimensional steady quasineutral hybrid model is established. In this model, ions are described by the above integral equation, and neutrals and electrons are described by hydrodynamic equations. The transferred equivalency to the differential equation and the integral equation, together with other equations, are solved by an ordinary differential equation (ODE) solver in the Matlab. The numerical simulation results show that under various circumstances, the ion average velocity would be different and needs to be deduced separately.