High-accuracy thrust measurements of the EMDrive and elimination of false-positive effects

Abstract

The EMDrive is a proposed propellantless propulsion concept claiming to be many orders of magnitude more efficient than classical radiation pressure forces. It is based on microwaves, which are injected into a closed tapered cavity, producing a unidirectional thrust with values of at least 1 mN/kW. This was met with high scepticism going against basic conservation laws and classical mechanics. However, several tests and theories appeared in the literature supporting this concept. Measuring a thruster with a significant thermal and mechanical load as well as high electric currents, such as those required to operate a microwave amplifier, can create numerous artefacts that produce false-positive thrust values. After many iterations, we developed an inverted counterbalanced double pendulum thrust balance, where the thruster can be mounted on a bearing below its suspension point to eliminate most thermal drift effects. In addition, the EMDrive was self-powered by a battery-pack to remove undesired interactions due to feedthroughs. We found no thrust values within a wide frequency band including several resonance frequencies and different modes. Our data limit any anomalous thrust to below the force equivalent from classical radiation for a given amount of power. This provides strong limits to all proposed theories and rules out previous test results by at least two orders of magnitude.