In the first chapter is set out a brief introduction on space propulsion, focusing attention to the electric propulsion in its various forms.

Abstract

The availability of increasing electrical power on board the spacecraft has led in recent years to deepen the studies on electric propulsion; if at the beginning the primacy in this area was contested by only the U.S. and Russia, today also Europe greatly expanded his knowledge and continue to improve through research and development activities.

This thesis describes part of a experimental campaign conducted in the laboratories of Alta S.p.a. aimed at the characterization of a Hall-effect thruster with 5 kW power of.

In the first chapter is set out a brief introduction on space propulsion, focusing attention to the electric propulsion in its various forms.

The second chapter analyzes in detail the Hall-effect thruster, starting with a brief introduction to plasma physics, then focuses on physical principles that allow the operation of a Hall-effect thruster and it ends with an analysis of parameters of performance.

Next chapter will provide details on the thruster under test and a description of the plan for tests and procedures performed. It then goes to examine the set up of the laboratory where has been carried out the test: it then passes through the equipment chosen for the simulation of space environment and to make measures of thruster performance.

The fifth chapter is entirely devoted to the beam diagnostics; it describes the system for beam diagnostics and the operations carried out by the analytic point of view that will be used to get from raw potential values, measured by probes of the two types, the results to be analyzed. It then describes the program of calculation, implemented in Matlab environment, to perform these operations.

It then goes on in the sixth chapter to analysis of the results of the test. So it shows the results of post-processing of raw data in terms of thruster performance and compare them with the state-of-art of the HET technology in the same power range.

The second part of chapter is entirely devoted to the post-processing of raw data in terms of beam diagnostic and analysis of the results both in terms of Faraday probes, both with regard to RPA.

Last chapter summarizes the results of the entire thesis work and there are quick

assumptions for possible future developments.