| Abstract: | Three-dimensional motion of relativistic electrons in ion-focused electrostatic system, which is the basis of investigating the ion-channel electron cyclotron maser (ICECM) or circular polarized ion-channel laser (CPICL), is analyzed through nonlinear numerical simulation. The results show that the projection of electron orbit in cross-section is, in general, a precessing ellipse with a center on the axis of the ion-channel in a cylindrical ion-focuse electrostatic system. When injection electrons satisfy a specific condition, the electrons can have a steady circular orbit. The effect of relativistic factor on electrons' motion is discussed. Using the perturbation method, the eigenfrequency of this system is derived as Equation $ \sqrt {4 - \beta _ \bot ^2 } \omega _0 $ where wo is the cyclotron frequency of the electrons. This implies that there may exist a new kind of instability in ICECM or CPICL. |
