MEMS Application of Quenching Effect to a Novel Micro Solid Rocket

Precise position and attitude control of pico-satellite requires huge number of impulses of the order of 10$^{-6}$ Ns. MEMS solid rocket array is a promising propulsion system but the higher degree of miniaturization causes unreliable operation mainly due to quenching. In order to breakthrough this situation, a novel design of solid micro-rocket is proposed, which generates tiny impulses repetitively from a single rocket not from array. This unique micro-rocket is based on the utilization of quenching, which causes propellant reaction to sustain only in a small area. A test chip of a micro solid propellant tank and micro heater array is fabricated and ignition test is conducted. Obtained results show the feasibility of this concept and future direction of this quenching-based propulsion is discussed.