A 237 GHz Traveling Wave Tube for Cloud Radar

Abstract

In this article, the first 237 GHz traveling wave tube (TWT) is presented as a high-power amplifier for the terahertz (THz) cloud radar. As is common with previous G-band traveling wave tubes developed at Beijing Vacuum Electronics Research Institute, the 237 GHz traveling wave tube employs a 20 kV, 50 mA pencil electron beam focused using periodic permanent magnets (PPMs) to achieve compactness. A folded waveguide (FWG) slow-wave structure (SWS) with modified circular bends is optimized to provide high impedance and eliminate sideband oscillations. Limited by insufficient drive power, this device is not saturated. The measured maximum output power and gain are 8.9 W and 35.7 dB, and the 3 dB gain bandwidth achieves 4 GHz.