Design of an Experiment for Studying Ion Acceleration by Beating Waves

The design and implementation of an experiment dedicated to the testing of recently derived criteria for ion acceleration by beating electrostatic (ES) waves are discussed. The non-resonant energization of the magnetized ions by the beating waves is potentially a highly-efficient process and thus of interest to propulsion. A cylindrical magnetized plasma source was constructed and uses either a helicon or inductive discharge designed to produce plasma parameters that allow testing the theory. The expected plasma parameters and the theoretical requirements led to an estimate of the frequency and intensity of the required electric field of the beating ES waves. The methodology for testing the effect is described along with the diagnostics needed to characterize the plasma and the effects of the injected waves.