An example method for producing thrust includes injecting a neutral gas into a cavity between an outer electrode and an inner electrode of a thruster, ionizing the neutral gas within the cavity into a plasma, causing the plasma to form into a plasma arc between the end of the inner electrode and the exhaust orifice of the outer electrode, generating a magnetic field that applies pressure on the plasma arc, maintaining stability of the plasma arc, and exhausting the plasma arc out of the exhaust orifice based on the applied pressure of the magnetic field, thereby producing thrust.

The present technology is directed to plasma systems and associated methods, including propulsion systems for flight vehicles. A representative system includes a plurality of coils. The coils include a first coil positioned along a force axis, a second coil positioned along the force axis and spaced apart from the first coil, and a third coil that is magnetically shielded. A controller is operatively coupled to the coils and is configured to (a) increase energy to the first coil to generate a magnetic field in a portion of the plasma adjacent to the first coil, (b) decrease energy to the first coil and increase energy to the second coil to translate the resulting superposed magnetic field through the plasma to a position adjacent the second coil, and (c) transfer energy from the second coil to the third coil and decrease energy to the second coil to reduce the magnetic field in the plasma.

As is scientifically well known, magnetic flux is a physical force (i.e. the Lorentz force and Ampere's force). The invention utilizes a plurality of electromagnetic and or plasma coils to create high pressure, high velocity magnetic flux directed through variable exhaust nozzles or a cone shaped electrical coil to create thrust for spacecraft. Electrically charged ions or electrons are collected and propelled along the created magnetic flux lines through the variable exhaust nozzles or electrical coils to create thrust.

A method and apparatus uses a VLF transmitter, a VLF receiver, and/or a low earth orbit satellite including a rocket engine. A VLF wave transmitted into space is converted to an ambient wave. The ambient wave acts as a signal wave for a whistler traveling wave parametric amplifier. Rocket exhaust is generated in atmospheric plasma. The rocket exhaust includes kinetic energy acting as a Lower Hybrid wave source. The Lower Hybrid wave source produces a Lower Hybrid wave, which acts as a pump wave for the parametric amplifier. Nonlinear mixing of the signal wave and the pump wave in the atmospheric plasma simultaneously parametrically amplifies the ambient wave and generates an idler wave and a parametrically amplified wave. The parametrically amplified wave (1) reduces the density of energetic protons or killer electrons in the Van Allen radiation belt, and (2) improves communications between the VLF transmitter and VLF receiver.

As is scientifically well known, magnetic flux is a physical force (i.e. the Lorentz force and Ampere's force). The invention utilizes a plurality of electromagnetic and or plasma coils to create high pressure, high velocity magnetic flux directed through variable exhaust nozzles or a cone shaped electrical coil to create thrust for spacecraft. Electrically charged ions or electrons are collected and propelled along the created magnetic flux lines through the variable exhaust nozzles or electrical coils to create thrust.

The present disclosure provides a plasma electric propulsion device comprising a capacitive energy storage device as a power source for an engine configured to heat and/or ionize and/or accelerate a propellant due to action of an electric field and/or magnetic field. The energy storage device comprises: a first electrically conductive electrode, a second electrically conductive electrode; and at least one metadielectric layer located between the first and second conductive electrodes. The metadielectric layer comprises at least one organic compound with at least one electrically resistive substituent and at least one polarizable unit. The polarizable unit is selected from intramolecular and intermolecular polarizable units. The organic compound is selected from the list comprising compounds with rigid electro-polarizable organic units, composite organic polarizable compounds, composite electro-polarizable organic compounds, composite non-linear electro-polarizable compounds, Sharp polymers, Furuta co-polymers, para-Furuta polymers, YanLi polymers, and any combination thereof.

A space based magnetic vortex accelerator and methods of use thereof having one or more sections of magnetic material configured as a conduit with a flightpath therethrough for the spacecraft, a magnetic coil field generator electrically connected to said one or more sections of magnetic material configured to generate a space based magnetic field via said one or more sections of magnetic material, a power plant electrically connected to said magnetic coil field generator, said power plant configured to power said magnetic coil field generator, one or more magnetic field receivers affixed to the spacecraft, said one or more magnetic field receivers configured to magnetically engage said space based magnetic field.

Electrodeless plasma is supplied to a space between a cathode and an anode such that a resistivity in the space is reduced. The electrodeless plasma is accelerated with Lorentz force induced by a radial direction magnetic field component and an axial direction magnetic field component that are generated in the space, and current in the space.

The invention provides an electrothermal RF plasma production system and thruster design, and associated components, that may be used in terrestrial applications and/or miniaturized to the mass, volume, and power budget of Cube Satellites (CubeSats) to meet the propulsion needs of the small satellite (?5 to ?500 kg) constellations and larger satellite buses.

The invention provides an electrothermal RF plasma production system and thruster design, and associated components, that may be used in terrestrial applications and/or miniaturized to the mass, volume, and power budget of Cube Satellites (CubeSats) to meet the propulsion needs of the small satellite (?5 to ?500 kg) constellations and larger satellite buses.