Inspired by NASA aerospace engineering, this project features a plasma thruster, designed to maximize efficiency and increase the voltage output. For that, Maker created a homemade ionic plasma thruster to harness the high-voltage generators (50,000+ volts) to accelerate ionized gas and create thrust.
This experiment is based on how electrons collide with neutral gases to form supercharged plasma. In order to focus the ionized particles into a directed beam, electromagnets are used, thus generating thrust without any moving parts. He made this home-made transformer to get high voltage as the regular thruster doesn't give enough thrust.
Together with the PWM signal generator and IRF540 MOSFET he built a simple and practical circuit for the transformer. Along with that, he used a capacitor multiplier circuit and diodes to boost the voltage. His dedication to building this ion thruster is truly impressive, but like previous versions, it still produces limited thrust since Argon molecules are much larger than electrons. That's why NASA opts for gases like xenon for more efficient propulsion.
This DIY high-voltage plasma generator is not quite ready to generate high thrusts but it's a fascinating experiment in ion propulsion and a great way to explore the physics behind NASA's advanced propulsion systems.
