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In this paper, a type of magnetically insulated anode structure is proposed for the design of a low-power cylindrical Hall thruster. The magnetic field distribution in the channel is guided by the magnetically insulated anode, altering the intersection status of the magnetic field line passing through the anode and wall. Experimental and simulation results show that a high potential is formed near the wall by the magnetically insulated anode. As the ionization moves towards the outlet, the energy and flux of the ions bombarding the channel wall can be reduced effectively. Due to the reduction in the bombardment of the wall from high-energy ions, the thrust and specific impulse greatly increase compared with those of the non-magnetically insulated anode. For anode mass flow rates of 0.3 and 0.35 mg s−1 and discharge voltages in the 100–200 V range, the thrust can be increased by more than 33% and the anode efficiency can be improved by more than 7%. Meanwhile, the length of the sputtering area is clearly reduced. The starting position of the sputtering area is in front of the magnetic pole, which can effectively prolong the service life of the thruster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A type of Hall thruster without wall losses is designed by adding two permanent magnet rings in the magnetic circuit. The maximum strength of the magnetic field is set outside the channel. Discharge without wall losses is achieved by pushing down the magnetic field and adjusting the channel accordingly. The feasibility of the Hall thrusters without wall losses is verified via a numerical simulation. The simulation results show that the ionization region is located in the discharge channel and the acceleration region is outside the channel, which decreases the energy and flux of ions and electrons spattering on the wall. The power deposition on the channel walls can be reduced by approximately 30 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]