Optimal geometry and materials for nanospacecraft magnetic damping systems

A magnetic damping system for nanospacecraft attitude stabilization is proposed, based on the use of thin strips of amorphous Fe-B-Si soft magnetic ribbons. The size, number, and location of the strips is optimized, and a predictive formulation is provided. The main result of ground tests, comparing the performance of several soft magnetic materials, is that suitably heat-treated amorphous ribbons provide the best loss performance in the whole range of magnetic fields expected in orbit.