Overview of Hall Electric Propulsion in China

Hall thruster is an attractive type of electric propulsion that is being developed to replace the chemical propulsion deployed in many tasks on satellites. The research on Hall thrusters in China has gradually progressed from basic theory to engineering applications, especially with the experience of on-orbit flight tests in low earth and geostationary equatorial orbits. This paper discusses the progress of research on Hall thrusters in China in recent years. This includes the beam focusing, scaling, high specific impulse, long lifetime, and effective magnetic field excitation techniques, as well as the stabilization technique of low-frequency oscillation, along with other types of Hall thrusters, such as cylindrical Hall, double-stage Hall, cusped field, nested-channel Hall, and anode layer Hall thrusters. In conclusion, this paper discusses the programs intended for the future focusing on the development of thrusters, their application prospects, and their use in space applications.