A thruster assembly, including a switch connected to a power source, a thruster, a propellant tank for storing and pressurising a propellant, and a propellant channel for guiding the propellant to the thruster. The thruster includes a space for receiving the propellant from the propellant channel, an electrically controlled heating element, a thruster body having a first thermal expansion coefficient, a valve component having a second thermal expansion coefficient, which is different than the first thermal expansion coefficient, inside the thruster body, and a nozzle, wherein the valve component includes a sealing surface closing the nozzle in a first temperature, and the electrically controlled heating element in response to actuation of the switch heats said thruster to a second temperature where the thermal expansion of the thruster opens the nozzle.

Electrospray devices and methods of fabricating electrospray devices are described.

A system for propelling a nanosatellite, including a pair of separated electrodes defining an ignition space therebetween a power source operationally connected to the pair of separated electrodes. Also included is a liquid propellant reservoir a pump reconnected in fluidic communication with reservoir and the ignition space and an electronic controller operationally corrected to the power source and to the pump.

An electrospray apparatus including a plurality of emitters, disposed on a substrate, wherein the plurality of emitters can have a narrow parameter distribution.

A matrix thruster that may be used to reposition and/or stabilize a CubeSAT satellite. The matrix thruster includes a conductive plate with an opening, a plurality of wires within the opening, a power supply electrically connected to the conductive plate or each of the plurality of wires via an inductor, and an electrical switch. The electrical switch creates a current change that creates an electric potential spike across the inductor. The electric potential spike across the inductor initiates an arc discharge between one of the wires and the conductive plate, which forms plasma that ejects cathode particles from the matrix thruster. Using multiple wires (e.g., four titanium wires) extends the lifetime of the thruster, as each wire restores an inter-electrode film needed for the other wires to continue generating plasma.

An ion jet engine system includes a jet turbine engine having at least one high voltage turbine blade, a microwave emitter in communication with the jet turbine engine, a water tank having stainless steel plates for providing and being in communication with the jet turbine engine, a plasma torch in communication with the water tank, and a plasma chamber in communication with the plasma torch and having diameter spheres that trap and internally reflect microwaves. Advantageously, the jet turbine engine uses plasma from ionizing air, and liquid hydrogen and/or oxygen from electrolyzing water to create thrust.

A vacuum arc thruster device having a cathode rod disposed within a concentric insulator tube, and an anode electrode located at the distal edge of the insulator tube, separated from the cathode rod by the insulator tube. A controlled feeding mechanism moves the cathode towards the distal exit plane in a helical motion, the cathode rotating as it moves forward. The cathode rod is fixed in the center of a headless screw segment, which is rotated within a screw thread on the internal surface of a cylindrical wall of the device. As the erosion rate is concentrated at the exit plane, the screw action path enables uniform erosion around the cathode circumference, and cathode linear motion that can be matched to the radial erosion rate. The feeding rate and hence the thrust are proportional to the input power, which can be regulated by the pulse frequency.

The disclosed propulsion system of a space vehicle and the methods of operating the propulsion system use a microwave energy source to heat propellant in a propellant chamber that pierces and traverses a waveguide carrying the microwave energy. In some implementations, the microwave energy ionizes and further heats the propellant in the propellant chamber. The partially ionized and heated propellant may exit the propellant chamber via a nozzle to generate thrust.

An ion propulsion device including emission modules in an emission plane, each module having an insulating support, an emission electrode on the support, and a conductive liquid with a microfluidic channel depositing conductive liquid on the electrode; an extraction electrode common to the emission modules and facing the modules; and a control unit, in which each module is configured to emit an ion beam when an electric field is applied to the liquid; each control unit controls an ion emission current emitted by applying a potential difference between each emission electrode and the extraction electrode; the emission electrodes are spaced apart by a linear distance that is greater than a distance between two adjacent emission electrodes separated by an empty space; and a length of the insulating support between the electrodes is greater than a propagation distance of an electric leakage current by charge jumping along the support between the electrodes.

In an aspect of the invention there is provided a plasma thruster device comprising: an electrically insulating substrate, said substrate comprising one or more feed channels for feeding an electrically conductive liquid to a bridge structure; said substrate further provided with electrical terminals; said bridge structure configured to form, when provided with the electrically conductive liquid, an electrical conducting bridge; said bridge structure configured to form contact areas in electrical contact with said electrical terminals, said bridge structure thereby connecting the contact areas, said bridge structure arranged for forming a plasma of said electrically conductive liquid, when the electrically conductive liquid is ionized by a current peak flow circuit that contacts the contact areas via said electrical terminals.