Large-signal theory of gyro traveling wave tubes at cyclotronharmonics

A nonlinear theory of gyrotron traveling wave tubes (gyro-TWTs) at cyclotron harmonics has been developed taking into account the electron velocity spread and the possibility of operating with significant Doppler frequency up-shift (CARM operation). It is shown that the orbital efficiency of the relativistic gyro-TWT operating at the second cyclotron harmonic with large frequency up-conversion may exceed 60%. It is also shown that the influence of the axial inhomogeneity of the wave field on the relation between amplitudes of electric and magnetic fields of the wave causes small changes in the efficiency of gyro-TWTs. The results obtained demonstrate the sensitivity of the harmonic gyro-TWT efficiency with respect to electron velocity spread at different axial wave numbers. The expressions for the gain are derived and discussed,     

Diocotron instability of the electron beam in the drift tube of a gyrotron

A cold fluid model is used to investigate instabilities associated with a velocity shear due to the self fields of a relativistic electron beam inside the beam tunnel of a gyrotron. General statements concerning the stability of an electron beam like the frequency and the growth rate are possible. The growth is expressed as a length that can be compared with the geometry in the gun-tube-resonator system.     

Efficiency Enhancement of the Relativistic Gyrotron

The possibilities to increase efficiency of relativistic gyrotrons by optimizing gyrotron parameters have been considered and different calculated models of gyrotrons, compared. Dependencies of the efficiency and optimal parameters on the accelerating voltage have been obtained. It is shown that efficiency of 35-45% can be achieved in a strongly relativistic gyrotron without energy recovery, and 60-70%, in the device with single stage energy recovery of the electron beam.     

Investigations of Advanced Coaxial Gyrotrons at IAP RAS

Main results of experimental testing of the 140 GHz/1.5 MW coaxial gyrotron are summarized. High selective properties of the coaxial cavities and a possibility to increase considerably the efficiency of a coaxial gyrotron only by applying independently an appropriate voltage on its electrodes (without any design modification) have been confirmed. Successful uses of the two-potential connection scheme for the frequency step tuning and output power modulation in a coaxial gyrotron has been also demonstrated.     

Gyrotron Backward Wave Oscillator Experiments with a Relativistic Electron Beam Using an X-Band Rectangular Waveguide

A mildly relativistic electron beam (500keV, 200A, 10ns) injected into an X-band rectangular waveguide immersed in a uniform axial magnetic field (4-10kG) produced magnetically tunable microwave radiation in the 9-13 GHz frequency range with an estimated output power of 1MW. The frequency range and tunability of the radiated microwave agreed with a theoretical model for a gyrotron backward wave oscillator taking into account the low energy component of the beam electron.     

Long Pulse Operation of the THz Gyrotron with a Pulse Magnet

Long pulse operation up to 1 msec of a high frequency gyrotron with a pulse magnet has been successfully carried out in a frequency range including 1 THz. In the experiments, the timing of an electron beam pulse injection is adjusted at the top of the magnetic field pulse, where the variation of field intensity is negligible. The operation cavity modes seem to be TE_{1, 12} and TE_4,12 at the second harmonics. The corresponding frequencies are 903 GHz and 1,013 GHz, respectively. Additionally several features of radiation measurement results of the gyrotron are described and brief considerations are presented.     

Dependence of Output Power on Cavity Length in a Gyrotron Backward Wave Oscillator

A relativistic electron beam (500 keV, 200 A, 10 ns) generated magnetically tunable microwave radiation in a frequency range of 9-13 GHz when it is injected into an X-band rectangular waveguide immersed in a uniform axial magnetic field (4-10 kG). The mechanism of the microwave radiation was identified as the gyrotron backward wave interaction. The output power of the radiated microwave increased exponentially with the increase of the cavity length.     

Amplitude modulation of submillimeter wave gyrotron output

Amplitude modulation of gyrotron by a small modulation of the anode voltage is calculated using an energy transfer formula. Experimental measurements using a submillimeter wave gyrotron are in good agreement. One hundred percent modulation of the output at frequencies up to several hundred kilohertz has been achieved with anode modulation levels of only a few percent. Numerical calculations lend further support to the experimental results.     

A new approach for a multistage depressed collector for gyrotrons

A feasibility study for a two-stage depressed gyrotron collector has been performed. A new approach for an adiabatic magnetic decompression of the hollow electron beam has been used. It permits control of the radius of the constant magnetic flux surface, which determines the radial extension of the electron beam. Independent of the value of the magnetic field around the beam. For this purpose, either solenoidal coils or a ferromagnetic insert can be placed inside the hollow electron beam. Thus, the radial dimensions of a multistage depressed collector of a high-power high-frequency gyrotron can be kept within limits given by technological constraints. The energy sorting of the electron beam is improved by using electrodes inside the hollow electron beam for controlling the potential distribution. The additional control electrodes make it possible to eliminate almost all of the effect of secondary electrons on the operation of the collector. In order to demonstrate the proposed approach, a compact two-stage depressed collector has been designed for a 1.5-MW coaxial cavity gyrotron operating at 165 GHz in the transverse electric (TE)_31,17 mode, which is under development at FZK, Karlsruhe, Germany. Including the effect due to secondary electrons, a collector efficiency of 73% has been calculated with an average and peak heat dissipation density of about 240 W/cm² and 500 W/cm², respectively. This results in an increase of the output gyrotron efficiency from 36.5% to 62.6% when internal radio frequency (RF)-losses inside the gyrotron tube of 15% are taken into account     

Continuous-Wave Operation of a Frequency-Tunable 460-GHz Second-Harmonic Gyrotron for Enhanced Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

The design, operation, and characterization of a continuous-wave (CW) tunable second-harmonic 460-GHz gyrotron are reported. The gyrotron is intended to be used as a submillimeter-wave source for 700-MHz nuclear magnetic resonance experiments with sensitivity enhanced by dynamic nuclear polarization. The gyrotron operates in the whispering-gallery mode TE(11,2) and has generated 16 W of output power with a 13-kV 100-mA electron beam. The start oscillation current measured over a range of magnetic field values is in good agreement with theoretical start currents obtained from linear theory for successive high-order axial modes TE(11,2,q). The minimum start current is 27 mA. Power and frequency tuning measurements as a function of the electron cyclotron frequency have also been carried out. A smooth frequency tuning range of 1 GHz was obtained for the operating second-harmonic mode either by magnetic field tuning or beam voltage tuning. Long-term CW operation was evaluated during an uninterrupted period of 48 h, where the gyrotron output power and frequency were kept stable to within ±0.7% and ±6 ppm, respectively, by a computerized control system. Proper operation of an internal quasi-optical mode converter implemented to transform the operating whispering-gallery mode to a Gaussian-like beam was also verified. Based on the images of the gyrotron output beam taken with a pyroelectric camera, the Gaussian-like mode content of the output beam was computed to be 92% with an ellipticity of 12%.     

Controllable spectrum of an axial-mode gyrotron with external reflections

The feasibility of controlling the spectrum of multifrequency oscillations in a gyrotron by means of external reflections is studied. It is shown that, in self-modulation oscillation modes of operation, the radiation spectrum lines may come close to the resonance frequencies of a combined electromagnetic system including the reflector-limited part of the output waveguide. Under these conditions, the frequency separation of modes and, accordingly, the self-modulation period can be controlled by varying the position of the reflector. Theoretical results are corroborated by experiments with a 30-GHz relativistic gyrotron with an external reflector.     

A High-Efficiency Second-Harmonic Gyrotron with a Depressed Collector

The gyrotron with an electrically insulated collector has been manufactured and tested. The 60% output efficiency is obtained for the Collector Potential Depression (CPD) operation regime. The results of the numerical simulation of the electron energy spectrum in the collector region of the second-harmonic technological 24 GHz gyrotron are presented. It is shown, that the minimal electron beam energy is about 20% of the initial value and that the gyrotron cavity should be expanded to achieve the highest output efficiency of the gyrotron with energy recovery. The highest experimental decelerating voltage is in good agreement with the calculation of the electron energy spectrum.     

System for the formation of an electron beam in a 258 GHz gyrotron designed for experiments on dynamic polarization of nuclei

We consider the features of a system for the formation of an electron beam in a continuouswave high-stability gyrotron at the second gyrofrequency harmonic with an operating frequency of 258 GHz. The problems related to the maintenance of the required beam parameters are analyzed. The procedure and results of numerical simulation of the electron gun and collector of the gyrotron are described. The influence of various physical factors on the characteristics of the electronoptical system of the gyrotron are studied. The design of the electron beam formation system is described along with the results of measuring its parameters.     

High-power oscillator of continuous electromagnetic radiation with a frequency of 300 GHz

We consider a general concept of construction, the possible versions, and specific features of a gyrotron, whose output power in CW oscillation regime can reach a few kilowatts at a frequency of 300 GHz. The gyrotron is designed for work in a high-frequency facility in combination with a “dry” cryomagnet, which ensures a magnetic field of up to 12 T, required for the gyrotron operation. The basic results of numerical simulation and optimization of the electron gun, the resonant cavity, and other subsystems of the gyrotron are presented. The designs used for the gyrotron development are justified. Preliminary experiments showed the efficiency of the pilotproduction gyrotron with an output power of about 2 kW, which is record-breaking in this frequency range. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 50, No. 6, pp. 461–470, June 2007.     

THE FIRST EXPERIMENT OF A THz GYROTRON WITH A PULSE MAGNET

A THz gyrotron with a pulse magnet has been designed, constructed and operated in FIR FU. It is developed as one of high frequency gyrotrons included in Gyrotron FU Series. The gyrotron has already achieved the first experimental result for high frequency operations whose radiation frequency exceeds 1 THz. In this paper, the design detail and the operation test results for sub-terahertz to terahertz range are described. The second harmonic operation is confirmed experimentally at the expected frequency of 1.005 THz due to TE_6,11 cavity mode at the magnetic field intensity of 19.0 T.     

Properties of a Second Harmonic Gyrotron Cavity with Internal Blazed Grating

Spectral domain analysis, scattering matrix analysis and PIC simulations are used here to design a second harmonic gyrotron cavity with an internal blazed grating which favors operation at the second harmonic of the electron cyclotron frequency rather than operation at the electron cyclotron frequency itself. Based on these simulations, the cavity design is optimized. The results show that a new gyrotron with higher power and higher frequency can be achieved by incorporating such a blazed grating.     

Efficiency Enhancement of the Relativistic Gyrotron

Different numerical models of relativistic gyrotrons are compared. The possibility of optimizing the cavity parameters is considered. Dependences of the efficiency and optimal parameters on the accelerating voltage are obtained. It is shown that an efficiency of 35 to 45% can be achieved in a strongly relativistic gyrotron without energy recovery, and of 60 to 70% in the case of single-stage recovery of the electron beam energy.     

Theory of step-tunable gyrotrons operating at two cyclotronharmonics

The scaling of operating parameters and the tendencies in the efficiency of the step-tunable gyrotron operating in a set of modes in a cavity of a given length are considered. Results of calculations are reported for the design of a ~1-kW, step-tunable gyrotron oscillator operating from 150 to 600 GHz in steps of about 15 GHz. Detailed results are presented for the efficiency, power losses in the cavity, and the starting conditions. Designs of the electron gun electrodes and of an output mode transducer are also presented. Full modulation of the radiation via the modulating anode of a magnetron injection gun is considered. The gyrotron would be of use for plasma diagnostics and spectroscopy, including electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR)     

High-Power Modulated Intense Relativistic Electron Sources with Applications to RF Generation and Controlled Thermonuclear Fusion

Recent advances in the physics and technology of the modulated intense relativistic electron beams (IREB's) are reviewed in this paper. Bunched dense electron beams can be used to construct high-power RF sources, which may critically affect future progress in fusion technology. In this paper a system is described in which electrical energy can be converted from a single pulse of relatively long duration into a series of subpulses of short duration (nanosecond and subnanosecond) and of high power (~1010 W). This electrical system consists of an IREB propagating through passive structures. The mutual interaction between the electron beam and one passive structure modifies the IREB so that power compression and beam modulation occur. When the modified IREB interacts with the next passive structure, the kinetic energy of the electrons is converted into electrical energy or RF energy. The beam current modulation depends on the injected IREB and the structure parameters. A 100-percent modulation of the current has been achieved. A single-beam source may be used for exciting radiation in a frequency range of 60 MHz to 10 GHz. In the frequency range of 60-750 MHz a modulated beam with power ~1010 W has already been achieved. IREB modulation at a frequency of ~3 GHz was performed and RF energy was extracted from the bunched beam with power output of 5 × 108 W.     

Ten-Megawatt Pulsed Gyrotron with a 1-cm Wavelength and a 50% Efficiency

Development of a gyrotron driven by a relativistic electron beam and generating radiation at the wavelength 1 cm with an output power of 10 MW, an efficiency of 50%, and a pulse duration of a few hundreds of nanoseconds is reported.