A direct Density Modulation Cathode (DMC) in magnetron is proposed in this paper. By removing the velocity modulation process, electron spokes corresponding to the dominant operating mode can be quickly formed when the DMC is used. Based on theoretical analysis, particle-in-cell simulations and experimental investigations are carried out for demonstration. The final results show that compared with conventional solid cathode and transparent cathode, the DMC can increase 68% and even 146% of relative microwave widths, respectively. V C 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.