A novel self-injection relativistic backward wave oscillator

Abstract

A novel self-injection relativistic backward wave oscillator (RBWO) has been proposed. By introducing a self-injection path into the RBWO, a small portion of the energy in the reflector can be coupled to the upstream of the reflector, and then the formed electric field in the self-injection path region can pre-modulate the passing electron beam, to promote a frequency-locking oscillation of the electron beam. The pre-modulated electron beam can be expected to enhance the beam-wave interaction and suppress parasitic mode oscillation, which is beneficial for maintaining the dominant role of the operating mode. The proposed self-injection RBWO shows great potential for improving the conversion efficiency and pulse duration time. Through particle-in-cell simulation, a microwave with a power of 10.6 GW is obtained, when the beam voltage is 1.08 MeV, and the beam current is 18.6 kA. The conversion efficiency is 53%.

Experimental study on the influence of grain boundary on breakdown in relativistic backward wave oscillator

“…Great progress has been made in high-power microwave (HPM) technology in recent decades and it is widely used in radar and directed energy weapons [1,2]. A great variety of HPM generators have been rapidly developed, among which the relativistic backward wave oscillator (RBWO) possesses the advantages of compact structure, large power capacity and reliable repetitive operation [3][4][5][6]. Since the first HPM experiment based on a RBWO was conducted in 1970, the output power and single pulse energy of this device have both increased tremendously [7][8][9][10][11].…”