Current state-of-the-art plasma thrusters are limited in power density and thrust density by power losses to plasma-facing walls and electrodes. In the case of Hall effect thrusters, power deposition to the discharge channel walls and anode negatively impact the efficiency of the thruster and limit the attainable power density and thrust density. The current work aims to recreate thruster-relevant wall-interaction physics in a quiescent plasma and investigate them using electrostatic probes, in order to inform the development of the next generation of high-power-density / high-thrust-density propulsion devices. Thruster plasma-wall interactions are complicated by the occurrence of the plasma sheath, a thin boundary layer that forms between a plasma and its bounding wall where electrostatic forces dominate. Sheaths have been recognized since the seminal work of Langmuir in the early 1900’s, and the theory of sheaths has been greatly developed to the present day. The theories are scalable across a wide range of plasma parameters, but due to the difficulty of obtaining experimental measurements of plasma properties in the sheath region, there is little experimental data available to directly support the theoretical development. Sheaths are difficult to measure in situ in thrusters due to the small physical length scale of the sheath (order of micrometers in thruster plasmas) and the harsh plasma environment of the thruster. Any sufficiently small probe will melt, and available optical plasma diagnostics do not have the sensitivity and/or spatial resolution to resolve the sheath region. The goal of the current work is to experimentally characterize plasma sheaths xxvi in a low-density plasma that yields centimeter-thick sheath layers. By generating thick sheaths, spatially-resolved data can obtained using electrostatic probes. The investigation focuses on the effects of electron emission from the wall and several factors that influence it, including wall material, wall temperature, wall surface roughness and topology, as well as the scaling of sheaths from the low-density plasma environment towards thruster conditions. The effects of electron emission and wall material are found to agree with classical fluid and kinetic theory extended from literature. In conditions of very strong emission from the wall, evidence is found for a full transition in sheath polarities rather than a non-monotonic structure. Wall temperature is observed to have no effect on the sheath over boron nitride walls independent of outgassing on initial heat-up, for sub-thermionic temperatures. Wall roughness is observed to postpone the effects of electron emission to higher plasma temperatures, indicating that the rough wall impairs the wall’s overall capacity to emit electrons. Reductions in electron yield are not inconsistent with a diffuse-emission geometric trapping model. Collectively, the experimental data provide an improved grounding for thruster modeling and design.Current state-of-the-art plasma thrusters are limited in power density and thrust density by power losses to plasma-facing walls and electrodes. In the case of Hall effect thrusters, power deposition to the discharge channel walls and anode negatively impact the efficiency of the thruster and limit the attainable power density and thrust density. The current work aims to recreate thruster-relevant wall-interaction physics in a quiescent plasma and investigate them using electrostatic probes, in order to inform the development of the next generation of high-power-density / high-thrust-density propulsion devices. Thruster plasma-wall interactions are complicated by the occurrence of the plasma sheath, a thin boundary layer that forms between a plasma and its bounding wall where electrostatic forces dominate. Sheaths have been recognized since the seminal work of Langmuir in the early 1900’s, and the theory of sheaths has been greatly developed to the present day. The theories are scalable across a wide range of plasma parameters, but due to the difficulty of obtaining experimental measurements of plasma properties in the sheath region, there is little experimental data available to directly support the theoretical development. Sheaths are difficult to measure in situ in thrusters due to the small physical length scale of the sheath (order of micrometers in thruster plasmas) and the harsh plasma environment of the thruster. Any sufficiently small probe will melt, and available optical plasma diagnostics do not have the sensitivity and/or spatial resolution to resolve the sheath region. The goal of the current work is to experimentally characterize plasma sheaths xxvi in a low-density plasma that yields centimeter-thick sheath layers. By generating thick sheaths, spatially-resolved data can obtained using electrostatic probes. The investigation focuses on the effects of electron emission from the wall and several factors that influence it, including wall material, wall temperature, wall surface roughness and topology, as well as the scaling of sheaths from the low-density plasma environment towards thruster conditions. The effects of electron emission and wall material are found to agree with classical fluid and kinetic theory extended from literature. In conditions of very strong emission from the wall, evidence is found for a full transition in sheath polarities rather than a non-monotonic structure. Wall temperature is observed to have no effect on the sheath over boron nitride walls independent of outgassing on initial heat-up, for sub-thermionic temperatures. Wall roughness is observed to postpone the effects of electron emission to higher plasma temperatures, indicating that the rough wall impairs the wall’s overall capacity to emit electrons. Reductions in electron yield are not inconsistent with a diffuse-emission geometric trapping model. Collectively, the experimental data provide an improved grounding for thruster modeling and design.

Dans ce travail, nous étudions la stabilité thermique et les effets des irradiations par un plasma d'hélium ou de deutérium de films minces de WO3 d’intérêt pour la fusion magnétique (projet ITER). L’objectif est de comprendre comment une oxydation du divertor modifie les interactions plasma paroi. Pour cela, nous avons synthétisé des films de WO3 par oxydation thermique de substrats de W à 400°C et caractérisé les effets du type de substrat, de la pression d’oxygène et du temps d’oxydation sur la structure et sur l’épaisseur des oxydes formés. La structure (monoclinique nanocristalline), la morphologie et les défauts des échantillons ont été analysés avant et après traitement, à différentes échelles, en utilisant la microscopie électronique, la microscopie Raman, la diffraction de rayons X, et la microscopie à force atomique.Le chauffage sous vide (400 - 800°C) a conduit à la formation de WO2. Le bombardement aux ions D+ (11 eV) a mené à une diffusion profonde du deutérium à travers le film d’oxyde, engendrant un effet électrochimique, observé ici pour la première fois sous irradiation plasma. Cet effet, réversible, est associé à la formation de bronzes de tungstène (DxWO3) et à une transition de phase vers une structure hexagonale. Des bombardements aux ions He+ (20 eV) ont été réalisés afin de dissocier les effets physiques et chimiques. A température ambiante, le bombardement a causé peu de changements morphologiques et structuraux. Par contre, le autre bombardement à 400°C a causé une érosion du film d’oxyde accompagnée d’un changement de couleur, une amorphisation en surface et la formation de bulles à l’interface W / WO3. / As part of laboratory studies devoted to magnetic fusion we have investigated the thermal stability and the effects of helium and deuterium plasma irradiation on tungsten oxide thin films. The objective is to predict the consequences of the oxidation of the W plasma facing component (divertor) for plasma wall interactions.To this aim, we have synthesized WO3 films by thermal oxidation of W substrates at 400°C and we have characterized the effects of the W substrate, the oxygen pressure and the oxidation duration on the structure and the thickness of the oxide films. The sample crystalline structure (monoclinic nanocrystalline), defects and morphologies were characterized before and after treatment using scanning and transmission electron microscopies, Raman microscopy, X-Ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy. Heating under vacuum up to 800°C leads to changes in the film structure and composition which results in the formation of WO2. D+ bombardment (11 eV) leads to D+ diffusion throughout the oxide film and to an electrochromic effect, here observed for the first time under plasma irradiation. This effect - which turned out to be reversible - is related to the formation of W bronzes (DxWO3) and to a phase transition of the oxide toward a hexagonal structure. Helium bombardments (20 eV) have then been performed to unravel physical and chemical processes at play. He+ bombardment at room temperature causes slight structural and morphological changes. On the contrary, He+ bombardment at 400°C leads to a significant erosion of the oxide film, accompanied by a colour change, the surface amorphisation and the formation of bubbles at the W / WO3 interface.

科学研究費補助金 研究種目:一般研究(A) 課題番号:01420044 研究代表者:高村 秀一 研究期間:1989-1991年度