ARCTRON: A New Experimental Facility for Studying Reentry Plasmas and Plasma Jet Stability

ARCTRON is a new platform for studying plasma–material interactions and flow physics relevant to spacecraft reentry. The ARCTRON system integrates multiple complementary heating approaches: a 2 kW inductively coupled plasma (ICP) torch in parallel with an arcjet, and a 2 kW blue laser for radiative heating. These are supplemented by graphite heating elements to extend temperature control up to 1000 °C. A set of water-cooled magnetic field coils provides up to 0.1 T for experiments involving magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects, while a sting arm with 2 axes of motion allows precise sample and diagnostic positioning within the flow. The facility will be able to operate with Argon, air, CO₂, O₂, N₂, and He, supporting both inert and reactive plasma environments.

A comprehensive diagnostic suite supports simultaneous plasma and material measurements: Argon LIF for flow velocity/temperature, LAS for atomic oxygen, a Shamrock 500i spectrograph, pyrometer, and cameras. In-situ diagnostics include a swept Langmuir probe, calorimeter, and embedded thermocouples.

Initial studies will target five areas: surface catalycity at high temperature, multi‑physics model validation, electrode erosion, magnetic shielding and flow control, and MHD arc stability.

By integrating multi‑modal heating, magnetic fields, and high‑resolution diagnostics, ARCTRON provides a unique laboratory platform to study key aspects of reentry plasmas and ground test facility technology.