Plasma gun utilizing successive arcs for generating and accelerating the plasma

Claim 1

IN A PLASMA GUN OF THE COAXIAL TYPE FOR THE PRODUCTION AND ACCELERATION OF A PLASMA OBTAINED FROM A NEUTRAL GAS, SAID GUN HAVING A FIRST AND A SECOND COAXIAL CYLINDRICAL ELECTRODE OF DIFFERENT DIAMETERS BETWEEN WHICH A STEADY POTENTIAL IS APPLIED, SAID GUN ALSO HAVING A DEVICE FOR THE PRELIMINARY IONIZATION OF SAID GAS INCLUDING A THIRD CYLINDRICAL ELECTRODE COAXIAL WITH SAID FIRST AND SECOND ELECTRODES AND A SOURCE OF ELECTRICAL IMPULSES CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND THIRD ELECTRODES, THE PRELIMINARILY IONIZED GAS TO SERVE FOR THE TRIGGERING OF A HIGH ENERGY DISCHARGE BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND SECOND ELECTRODES TO ACCELERATE SAID PLASMA AND DRIVE IT OUT OF SAID GAS, THE IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN: (A) SAID FIRST AND THIRD ELECTRODES ARE LOCATED WITHIN SAID SECOND ELECTRODE AND ARE AXIALLY OFFSET FROM ONE ANOTHER TO DEFINE A RADIALLY EXTENDING PRELIMINARY IONIZATION CHAMBER; (B) MEANS ARE PROVIDED TO INJECT A PREDETERMINED QUANTITY OF GAS FOR IONIZATION GENERALLY CENTRALLY OF SAID RADIALLY EXTENDING PRELIMINARY IONIZATION CHAMBER WHEREBY SAID INJECTED GAS EXPANDS INTO A RADIAL RING OF PLASMA IN SAID RADIALLY EXTENDING CHAMBER UNDER SAID PRELIMINARY IONIZATION AND COMES IN CONTACT WITH SAID SECOND ELECTRODE WHEREBY TRIGGERING SAID HIGH ENERGY DISCHARGE BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND SECOND ELECTRODES CAUSES EJECTION OF SAID PLASMA AXIALLY OF SAID ELECTRODES AND OUTWARDLY OF SAID GUN; AND (C) WHEREIN THE FORWARD END OF SAID THIRD ELECTRODE IS ROUNDED.