Single-stage depressed collectors for gyrotrons

Two 140 GHz gyrotrons with a single-step depressed collector have been operated. The different position of the isolating collector gap in the stray magnetic field causes the electron motion in the retarding region to be in one case adiabatic and in the other case nonadiabatic. The kind of motion within the retarding field influences strongly the behavior of the gyrotron with a depressed collector. In the case of nonadiabatic motion a significant amount of transverse momentum is given to the electrons reflected at the collector potential. This causes the reflected electrons to be trapped between the magnetic mirror and the collector. The electrons escape from the trap by diffusion across the magnetic field to the body of the tube thus contributing to the body current. Despite the high body current there is no observable influence of the collector voltage on the RF output power. In the case of adiabatic motion the reflected electrons do not gain a sufficient amount of transverse momentum to be trapped by the magnetic mirror. They pass the cavity toward the gun and they are trapped between the negative gun potential and the collector. The interaction with the RF field by electrons traveling through the cavity enhances the diffusion in the velocity space thus enabling the trapped electrons to overcome the potential barrier and escape toward the collector. Therefore the body current stays at low values since in this case the reflected electrons do not contribute to it. However, at higher collector voltages a reduction of RF power occurred and some noise in the electron beam was observed     

超强激光与泡沫微结构靶相互作用提高强流电子束产额模拟研究

利用二维粒子模拟方法,本文研究了超强激光与泡沫微结构镀层靶相互作用产生强流电子束问题.研究发现泡沫区域产生了百兆高斯级准静态磁场,形成具有选能作用的"磁势垒",强流电子束中的低能端电子在"磁势垒"的作用下返回激光作用区域,在鞘场和激光场的共同作用下发生多次加速过程,从而显著提升高能电子产额.还应用单粒子模型,分析了电子在激光场作用下的运动行为,验证了多次加速的物理机理.     

Filling of traps with electrons in insulators subjected to intense electron irradiation

The efficiency of nonequilibrium electron trapping by capture centers in alkali halide crystals, quartz, and polymethyl methacrylate exposed to an intense electron beam with a beam current density of about 20 A/cm² is studied. The trapped charge is estimated from the amount of irradiation-induced electrification of high-resistivity materials. It is shown that traps having captured thermalized electrons become depleted via impact ionization due to the primary electrons of the beam and secondary electrons.     

带状束高功率微波源宽通带收集极

设计了一种适用于带状电子束高功率微波源的宽通带收集极,在有效吸收束-波相互作用后的带状电子束的同时,保证了带状电子束高功率微波源的工作模式——矩形波导TM11模式高效率地通过。研究结果表明:在13~27GHz范围内,功率传输效率大于95%,这一宽通带特性使得该类型的收集极与带状电子束高功率微波源能够更好配合,显著提高了微波源的模拟优化和实验调试效率;TM11模式微波的传输效率对收集极厚度和长度等参数不敏感;该类型收集极结构具有良好的散热能力,在不加外部水冷装置的条件下,仅靠空气自然对流冷却和辐射冷却,可以承受电流3kA、电压300kV、脉冲宽度30ns及重复频率50Hz带状电子束的连续冲击。     

Critical (burst) electron emission from dielectrics, induced by injection of a dense electron beam

A dense pulsed electron beam and nanosecond pulse length has been used to inject negative electric charge into various dielectric materials (single crystals, glasses, composites, plastics) for initiation of electron field emission from the dielectric into a vacuum. It has been shown that upon reaching a critical electric field in the bulk and at the dielectric surface there is intense critical electron emission. The local current density from the emission centers reaches a record value (for dielectrics) of the order of 10⁶ A/cm². The emission occurs in the form of a single gigantic pulse. The measured amplitude of the emission current averaged over the emitting surface is the same order of magnitude as the injected electron current: 10–1000 A. the emission current pulse lages behind the current pulse of the primary electron beam injected into the sample. The delay time is in the range 1–20 nsec and decreases with increasing current density of the injected beam. Direct experimental evidence is found for intense generation of carriers (band or quasifree electrons) in the near-surface layer of the dielectric in a strong electric field due to the Frenkel-Poole effect and collisional ionization of traps, usually various donor levels. This process greatly strengthens the field emission from the dielectric. It has been shown experimentally that the emission is nonuniform and is accompanied by “point bursts” at the surface of the dielectric and ionized plasma spikes in the vacuum interval. These spikes are the main reason that the transition of the field emission into “bursts” is critical, similar to the current which has been previously observed in metals and semiconductors. However there are a number of substantial differences. For example the critical field emission current density needed for the transition into “bursts” is three orders of magnitude less than for metals. If we provide sufficient electron current at the surface or from the bulk of the dielectric to the emission centers, then the critical emission is always accompanied by a vacuum discharge between the surface of the dielectric and a metallic collector. A detailed computer model of the processes in the dielectric during injection of a high-density electron beam has been developed which allows one to understand the complex physical pattern of the phenomenon. Tomsk Polytechnic University. Institute of High-Current Electronics, Siberian Section, Russian Academy of Sciences. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 11, pp. 45–67, November, 1997.     

The reflectivity of relativistic ultra-thin electron layers

The coherent reflectivity of a dense, relativistic, ultra-thin electron layer is derived analytically for an obliquely incident probe beam. Results are obtained by two-fold Lorentz transformation. For the analytical treatment, a plane uniform electron layer is considered. All electrons move with uniform velocity under an angle to the normal direction of the plane; such electron motion corresponds to laser acceleration by direct action of the laser fields, as it is described in a companion paper [Eur. Phys. J. D 55, 433 (2009)]. Electron density is chosen high enough to ensure that many electrons reside in a volume λ_R ³, where λ_R is the wavelength of the reflected light in the rest frame of the layer. Under these conditions, the probe light is back-scattered coherently and is directed close to the layer normal rather than the direction of electron velocity. An important consequence is that the Doppler shift is governed by γ_x=(1-(V_x/c)²)^-1/2 derived from the electron velocity component V_x in normal direction rather than the full γ-factor of the layer electrons.     

纳秒脉冲气体放电中逃逸电子束流的研究

经典的放电理论(Townsend和流注理论)不能很好地解释纳秒脉冲放电中的现象,近年来基于高能量电子逃逸击穿的纳秒脉冲气体放电理论研究受到广泛关注,有研究发现,高能逃逸电子是纳秒脉冲气体放电中的新特征参数,本文研制了用于测量纳秒脉冲放电中逃逸电子束流的收集器,并对脉宽3—5ns、上升沿1.2—1.6 n8激励的大气压纳秒脉冲气体放电中逃逸电子束流进行了测量,收集器采用类似法拉第杯的原理,利用金属极收集纳秒脉冲放电中的高能电子,并转换为电信号后由示波器采集,为了获得更好的逃逸电子束流波形,对逃逸电子束流收集器进行了优化设计,提高了收集器的阻抗匹配特性,基于上述的逃逸电子束流收集器,研究了纳秒脉冲气体放电中逃逸电子的特征,实验结果表明,所设计的收集器可以有效地测量到逃逸电子束流,改进设计后收集器测得的逃逸电子柬流的时间分辨率和幅值均得到提高,施加电压约80 kV时,大气压空气中的逃逸电子束流幅值可达160 mA,脉宽小于1ns,多个脉冲激励放电的结果表明逃逸电子束流收集器具有较好的可靠性,其瞬态响应与时间分辨率比较稳定。     

不同磁路下微型ECR中和器电子引出的模拟研究

电子回旋共振(ECR)中和器是微型ECR离子推力器的重要组成部分,其引出的电子用于中和ECR离子源的离子束流,避免了航天器表面电荷堆积,并且电子引出性能对推力器的整体性能起着重要作用.为了分析影响微型ECR中和器电子引出的因素,本文建立了二维轴对称PIC/MCC计算模型,通过数值模拟研究不同磁路结构对中和器的电子引出,及不同腔体长度对壁面电流损失的影响.计算结果表明, ECR区位置和引出孔附近磁场构型对中和器的电子引出性能至关重要.当ECR区位于天线上游,电子在迁移扩散中易损失,并且电子跨过引出孔前电势阱所需的能量更高.如果更多磁力线平行通过引出孔,中和器引出相同电子电流所需电压较小.当ECR区被天线切割或位于下游时,电子更易沿磁力线迁移到引出孔附近,从而降低了收集板电压.研究了同一磁路结构下不同腔体长度对电子引出的影响,发现增加腔体长度,使得更多平行轴线的磁力线通过引出孔从而避免电子损失在引出板表面,增加了引出电子电流.研究结果有助于设计合理的中和器磁路和腔体尺寸.     

study of the reverse current range in a knudsen diode with surface ionization under overneutralized conditions in the presence of electron emission from the collector: Part I. Large electrode spacing

The reverse current range of a Knudsen diode with surface ionization is studied under overneutralized conditions in the presence of electron emission from the collector. The difficulty of the problem is associated with the need to consider three particle flows: ions and electrons from the emitter and electrons from the collector. This work consists of two parts. In the first part, the potential distributions and I-V characteristics for plasma regimes, where the potential distribution has a quasi-neutrality portion, are calculated. In the second, the diode with a small electrode spacing, where the near-electrode potential jumps overlap, is investigated. The asymptotic behavior of the current under high negative voltages is examined. Data obtained are compared with the classical Langmuir results for the diode with two opposing electron and ion flows.     

Smith-Purcell free electron laser based on the semi-elliptical resonator

A novel Smith-Purcell(S-P) free electron laser composed of an electron gun,a semi-elliptical resonator,a metallic reflecting grating and a collector,is presented for the first time.This paper studies the characteristics of this device by theoretical analysis and particle-in-cell simulation method.Results indicate that tunable coherent S-P radiation with a high output peak power at millimeter wavelengths can be generated by adjusting the length of the grating period,or adjusting the voltage of the electron beam.The present scheme has the following advantages:the semi-elliptical resonator can reflect all radiation with the emission angle θ and random azimuthal angles,back onto the electron beam with same-phase and causes the electrons to be modulated,so the output power and efficiency are improved.     

Fluid Model of a Sheath Formed in Front of an Electron Emitting Electrode Immersed in a Plasma with Two Electron Temperatures

The formation of a sheath in front of a negatively biased electrode (collector) that emits electrons is studied by a one‐dimensional fluid model. Electron and ion emission coefficients are introduced in the model. It is assumed that the electrode is immersed in a plasma that contains energetic electrons. The electron velocity distribution function is assumed to be a sum of two Maxwellian distributions with two different temperatures, while the ions and the emitted electrons are assumed to be monoenergetic. The condition for zero electric field at the collector is derived. Using this equation the dependence of electron and ion critical emission coefficients on various parameters ‐ like the ratio between the hot and cool electron density, the ratio between hot and cool electron temperature and the initial velocity of secondary electrons ‐ is calculated for a floating collector. A modification of the Bohm criterion due to the presence of hot and emitted electrons is also given. The transition between space charge limited and temperature limited electron emission for a current‐carrying collector is also analyzed. The critical potential, where this transition occurs, is calculated as a function of several parameters like the Richardson emission current, the ratio between the hot and cool electron density, the ratio between hot and cool electron temperature and the initial velocity of secondary electrons. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Long electron spin memory times in gallium arsenide

Extremely long electron spin memory times in GaAs are reported. It was established by the optical orientation method that the spin relaxation time of electrons localized at shallow donors in n-type gallium arsenide (N _d ?N _A ≈10¹⁴ cm^?3) is 290±30 ns at a temperature of 4.2 K. The exchange interaction of quasi-free electrons and electrons at donors suppresses the main spin-loss channel for electrons localized at donors—spin relaxation due to the hyperfine interaction with lattice nuclei.     

Control of the Interface Between Electron‐Hole and Electron‐Ion Plasmas: Hybrid Semiconductor‐Gas Phase Devices as a Gateway for Plasma Science

Coupling electron‐hole (e^–‐ h⁺) and electron‐ion plasmas across a narrow potential barrier with a strong electric field provides an interface between the two plasma genres and a pathway to electronic and photonic device functionality. The magnitude of the electric field present in the sheath of a low temperature, nonequilibrium microplasma is sufficient to influence the band structure of a semiconductor region in immediate proximity to the solid‐gas phase interface. Optoelectronic devices demonstrated by leveraging this interaction are described here. A hybrid microplasma/semiconductor photodetector, having a Si cathode in the form of an inverted square pyramid encompassing a neon microplasma, exhibits a photosensitivity in the ～420–1100 nm region as high as 3.5 A/W. Direct tunneling of electrons into the collector and the Auger neutralization of ions arriving at the Si surface appear to be facilitated by an n ‐type inversion layer at the cathode surface resulting from bandbending by the microplasma sheath electric field. Recently, an npn plasma bipolar junction transistor (PBJT), in which a low temperature plasma serves as the collector in an otherwise Si device, has also been demonstrated. Having a measured small signal current gain h_fe as large as 10, this phototransistor is capable of modulat‐ing and extinguishing the collector plasma with emitter‐base bias voltages <1 V. Electrons injected into the base when the emitter‐base junction is forward‐biased serve primarily to replace conduction band electrons lost to the collector plasma by secondary emission and ion‐enhanced field emission in which ions arriving at the base‐collector junction deform the electrostatic potential near the base surface, narrowing the potential barrier and thereby facilitating the tunneling of electrons into the collector. Of greatest significance, therefore, are the implications of active, plasma/solid state interfaces as a new frontier for plasma science. Specifically, the PBJT provides the first opportunity to control the electronic properties of a material at the boundary of, and interacting with, a plasma. By specifying the relative number densities of free (conduction band) and bound (valence band) electrons at the base‐collector interface, the PBJT's emitter‐base junction is able to dictate the rates of secondary electron emission (including Auger neutralization) at the semiconductor‐plasma interface, thereby offering the ability to vary at will the effective secondary electron emission coefficient for the base surface (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Polarised hot electron luminescence in p-GaAs: Electric field effects

Electrons photo-excited to high-energy conduction band states of GaAs exhibit complex energy and momentum distributions determined by the anisotropic valence band structure and the optical matrix elements. In p-type GaAs a fraction of these hot electrons combine with localised acceptor states, producing a hot electron luminescence (HEL) spectrum with a cascade of peaks corresponding to discrete energy losses resulting from LO-phonon emission. The highest peak involves unscattered electrons, and their energy distribution is due to warping of the initial heavy-hole (HH) bands. We report measurements of the line shape of this 0-HH peak, and its polarisation profile which identifies emission from electrons along particular directions. An applied electric field of 1 kV cm⁻¹ distorts the hot electron momentum distribution, and this is reflected in the polarisation profile. These line shapes and profiles, with and without field, are calculated using a computer model incorporating a band structure and optical matrix elements, the effect of electric field being included using a k-broadening model. The data and model are in good quantitative agreement assuming an electron lifetime of 100 fs, and confirm the expected differences in the profiles for different excitation polarisation states and applied field directions.     

Evidence for electron emission stimulated desorption from negative electron affinity GaAs surfaces

While desorption from surfaces caused by impinging electrons (electron stimulated desorption) is a well-established effect, electrons to be emitted also may give rise to desorption from an emitting surface (electron-emission stimulated desorption). Evidence for this effect is derived from data on the degradation of electron emission from negative electron affinity GaAs surfaces. The time dependence of the degradation is calculated, and agreement with the observed linear time dependence is found. Using the experimental degradation ata, the desorption cross section for the electron-emission stimulated desorption is obtained as 2 × 10^?25 cm².     

Ultrashort electron beam and volume high-current discharge in air under the atmospheric pressure

Conditions are studied under which an electron beam and a volume discharge with a subnanosecond rise time of a voltage pulse are produced in air under atmospheric pressure. It is shown that the electron beam appears in a gas-filled diode at the front of the voltage pulse in ∼0.5 ns, has a half-intensity duration of ≤0.4 ns and an average electron energy of ∼0.6 of the voltage across the gas-filled diode, and terminates when the voltage across the gap reaches its maximum value. The electron beam with an average electron energy of 60 to 80 keV and a current amplitude of ≥70 A is obtained. It is assumed that the electron beam is formed from electrons produced in the gap due to gas ionization by fast electrons when the intensity of the field between the front of the expanding plasma cloud and the anode reaches its critical value. A nanosecond volume discharge with a specific power input of ≥400 MW/cm³, a density of the discharge current at the anode of up to 3 kA/cm², and specific energy deposition of ∼1 J/cm³ over 3 to 5 ns is created.     

Coherent Thomson backscattering from laser-driven relativistic ultra-thin electron layers

The generation of laser-driven dense relativistic electron layers from ultra-thin foils and their use for coherent Thomson backscattering is discussed, applying analytic theory and one-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation. The blow-out regime is explored in which all foil electrons are separated from ions by direct laser action. The electrons follow the light wave close to its leading front. Single electron solutions are applied to initial acceleration, phase switching, and second-stage boosting. Coherently reflected light shows Doppler-shifted spectra, chirped over several octaves. The Doppler shift is found ∝ γ_x ²=1/(1-β_x ²), where β_x is the electron velocity component in normal direction of the electron layer which is also the direction of the driving laser pulse. Due to transverse electron momentum p_y, the Doppler shift by 4γ_x ²=4γ²/(1+(p_y/mc)²)≈2γ is significantly smaller than full shift of 4γ². Methods to turn p_y→0 and to recover the full Doppler shift are proposed and verified by 1D-PIC simulation. These methods open new ways to design intense single attosecond pulses.     

Über den zeitlichen Verlauf des Stromes einer Gasentladung in Wasserstoff

The transient growth of currents in a Townsend gas discharge system under uniform dc field conditions in Hydrogen is examined. The discharge is started by 10³ to 10⁶ electrons released from the cathode by an UV light pulse within some 10^?7 seconds. Observed oscillations of the current are found to be due to the motion of the electrons through the gap creating new electrons by photoelectron emission at the cathode due to photons generated in the gap. At sparking threshold conditions (Μ ₀=1) the electron current becomes self-sustaining after a few electron transit times. The positive ion current soon exceeds the electron current and grows linearly with time (Μ ₀=1) until the positive ions of the first generation enter the cathode. For times greater than a positive-ion transit time the current becomes self-sustaining. Neglecting space-charge effects one would not expect a spark to occur. The space-charge of the positive ions, however, causes a distortion of the field changing the ionization efficiency of the electrons. It is shown that an observed rapid growth of current leading to breakdown after some positive-ion transit times is in agreement to this conception.     

Application of a scanning electron microscope in simulating a beta-emission-induced current

The current induced by emission from a thin ⁶³Ni layer is simulated with allowance for the real spectrum of ejected electrons and their angular distribution in Si and GaN. The calculated results are compared with simulation data obtained for a monoenergetic electron beam perpendicular to the semiconductor detector. For both Si and GaN, the ratio between the currents induced by the SEM beam and β emission from ⁶³Ni is demonstrated to be almost completely independent of the diffusion length, if the electron-beam energy of a scanning electron microscope (SEM) is appropriately selected.     

Fast electron energy deposition in aluminium foils: Resistive vs. drag heating

The high current electron beam losses have been studied experimentally with 0.7 J, 40 fs, 6 10¹⁹ Wcm^-2 laser pulses interacting with Al foils of thicknesses 10-200 μm. The fast electron beam characteristics and the foil temperature were measured by recording the intensity of the electromagnetic emission from the foils rear side at two different wavelengths in the optical domain, ≈407 nm (the second harmonic of the laser light) and ≈500 nm. The experimentally observed fast electron distribution contains two components: one relativistic tail made of very energetic (T _h ^tail ≈ 10 MeV) and highly collimated (7° ± 3°) electrons, carrying a small amount of energy (less than 1% of the laser energy), and another, the bulk of the accelerated electrons, containing lower-energy (T _h ^bulk=500 ± 100 keV) more divergent electrons (35 ± 5°), which transports about 35% of the laser energy. The relativistic component manifests itself by the coherent 2ω₀ emission due to the modulation of the electron density in the interaction zone. The bulk component induces a strong target heating producing measurable yields of thermal emission from the foils rear side. Our data and modeling demonstrate two mechanisms of fast electron energy deposition: resistive heating due to the neutralizing return current and collisions of fast electrons with plasma electrons. The resistive mechanism is more important at shallow target depths, representing an heating rate of 100 eV per Joule of laser energy at 15 μm. Beyond that depth, because of the beam divergence, the incident current goes under 10¹² Acm^-2 and the collisional heating becomes more important than the resistive heating. The heating rate is of only 1.5 eV per Joule at 50 μm depth.