Gyrotron travelling wave amplifier: II. Effects of velocity spread and wall resistivity

The small signal gain and bandwidth of the gyrotron travelling-wave amplifier (gyro-TWA) operating at the fundamental cyclotron harmonic are examined. The analytical and numerical studies focus on the effects of velocity spread in the electron beam and of a distributed wall resistivity in the waveguide. It is found that wall resistivity reduces the forward gain of the amplifier only by an amount approximately equal to 1/3 of the corresponding cold tube loss. Significant increase in bandwidth may result, under certain conditions, from the presence of wall resistivity. A moderate amount (5–10%) of velocity spread does not reduce the peak gain significantly in general, but may reduce the bandwidth by an amount depending on the applied magnetic field. Based on considerations of such factors as power, stability, gain, bandwidth, and efficiency, operating parameters for the gyro-TWA are suggested.