Microwave plasma-electron beam interactions for hypersonic flow control

Summary form only given. Results on the microwave plasma-electron beam interaction experiment indicated that microwave plasmas could be reliably initiated at pressures above 10 Torr using the low power electron beam. Initial indications of plasma modulation were promising. The beam window had a strong effect on beam width. Comparison with Monte-Carlo simulations indicated that window composition and thickness must be considered to decrease beam width, and thereby improve plasma control. The application under study at present is hypersonic flow control. The microwave plasma will provide localized energy addition to a flow. The goal is to obtain steering moments on wind tunnel models using an electronically steered electron beam. Plans are to introduce the electron beam-microwave plasma setup, into a Mach 3 wind tunnel, investigate effects on the flow field, and measure moments obtained using various levels of microwave power.