Multi-Stage Plasma Thruster.

Multi stage plasma propulsion offers the opportunity to extend electric population capabilities as space power levels develop. In this effort, the contractor considered an electric propulsion development strategy in which a family of thrusters was based on multiple stages of electromagnetic acceleration using the Teflon pulsed plasma thruster as the initial stage. Experimental tests explored three multi stage thruster configurations. The contractor concluded that multi stage can match mission power levels and transfer times.