And it's based on a kind of plasma.
revealed last year a working prototype of a microwave thruster. The engine, the researchers say, should be able to work in Earth's atmosphere with comparable efficiency and thrust to that of conventional jet engines. Normally using noble gas, like, xenon, plasma engines have not been shown to be practical in Earth's atmosphere as generated ions tend to lose thrust force thanks to friction with the air.
new engine, the ionized air is used to produce a low-temperature plasma that is then fed into a tube using an air compressor. As the air travels up the tube it is bombarded with microwaves, which violently shake the ions, causing them to impact other non-ionized atoms. Ad Astra Rocket Company/Wikimedia Commons
This amazing feat is achieved, in part, through the use of a flattened waveguide through which the microwaves are focussed. Generated by a specially designed 1KW, 2.45-Gh magnetron, the microwaves are sent down the guide that tapers down to half its initial size as it approaches the plasma, and then expands again. This process boosts the electric field strength and impacts as much heat and pressure to the plasma as possible.
Once the plasma is in the waveguide, the charged particles start to oscillate within the microwave field — causing rapid heating. In doing so, the soup of atoms, ions, and electrons collide with one another frequently, spreading the energy from the ions and electrons to the neutral atoms, heating the plasma rapidly.
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