BRIGHT – Building Route to an Innovative Generation of Hall Thrusters

BRIGHT is a five-year Italian national research project funded under FISA and jointly carried out by the University of Pisa and Aerospazio Tecnologie. The project aims to develop a next-generation Hall thruster optimized for satellite constellations, capable of operating efficiently over a wide power range (500 W–5 kW) with an efficiency above 50%. The thruster is designed to operate with alternative propellants, primarily krypton and argon, reducing dependency on xenon and overall mission costs. Key technological pillars include high current density operation, swirl (azimuthal) propellant injection to enhance ionization, magnetic shielding to limit erosion and extend lifetime, and the use of conductive discharge channels enabled by reduced plasma–wall interaction. Additive manufacturing is leveraged to produce complex components such as propellant distributors, magnetic circuits, ceramic insulators, and thermal management elements. BRIGHT integrates plasma modelling, advanced manufacturing, and extensive experimental validation through component- and system-level breadboard testing, with the objective of delivering a scalable, competitive electric propulsion solution for the European space sector.