Hughes Aircraft Company

Gisela Eckhardt

Wilfried O Eckhardt

Liquid-metal plasma valve has an anode, a condenser and a force-fed liquid-metal cathode. These bound the interelectrode space through which the plasma jet acts during conduction. The cathode directs the plasma jet to impinge on an inclined surface which acts as the anode. The inclined surface reflects the particles to the condenser when the anode is noncondensing, but when the functions of anode and condenser are combined, the inclined surface of the condensing anode traps the jet particles. When the anode is noncondensing, in some cases the condenser and anode are at the same potential and in other cases the condenser and cathode are at the same potential. Cathode, anode and condenser are shaped to minimize the transit time of jet particles from emission to condensation.

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Malibu, CA, United States of America

Gisela Eckhardt