Gyrodevice oscillators and amplifiers (or gyro-oscillators and gyro-amplifiers) are being utilized in a variety of applications where high power levels are required at millimeter-wave frequencies. Gyro-oscillators, developed primarily for magnetic fusion research applications, have achieved power levels near 1 MW for pulse durations in excess of 1 s at frequencies above 100 GHz. Continued work on these devices should enable them to achieve continuous-wave operation at multimegawatt power levels at frequencies in the 100-GHz to 200-GHz range, thereby meeting the requirements of planned magnetic fusion experiments. The development of gyro-oscillators for fusion experiments has led to the utilization of the devices in several industrial applications, such as ceramic sintering and metal joining. Activities in this area involve adapting the oscillators to the industrial environment where reliability, efficiency, and ease of operation are paramount. Gyro-amplifiers are being developed for applications requiring phase coherence and instantaneous bandwidth, such as in linear accelerators and millimeter-wave radar. Impressive results from X-band to W-band already suggest the promise of these devices. Potential new applications and novel gyrodevice design approaches continue to attract the attention of researchers around the world.

Characteristics and applications of fast-wave gyrodevices

This paper presents a comprehensive theory of the cyclotron resonance maser (CRM) interaction in a circular waveguide. The kinetic theory is used to derive the dispersion relationships for both TE and TM modes. The TE mode case has been investigated by several authors, but there has been comparatively little work on the TM mode case. However, the TM mode interaction competes effectively with the TE mode interaction at relativistic electron energies. The conditions for maximum temporal and spatial growth rates are shown. The TM mode growth rates are found to vanish when the RF wave group velocity equals the beam axial velocity (‘grazing incidence’). The single particle theory is used to derive a compact set of self-consistent non-linear equations for the TE and TM mode interactions. These equations are particularly appropriate for the cyclotron auto-resonance maser (CARM) regime but applicability extends to other regimes as well. The conditions for optimum efficiency are investigated for oscillator and amp...

Linear and nonlinear theory of the Doppler-shifted cyclotron resonance maser based on TE and TM waveguide modes

We have designed and experimentally demonstrated the operation of a novel quasioptical gyrotron oscillator based on an overmoded confocal waveguide cavity. This cavity effectively suppresses undesired modes, and therefore has extremely low mode density. Stable single-mode, single-frequency operation was achieved in the TE/sub 06/ mode at 136 GHz. A peak RF output power of 66 kW, corresponding to an efficiency of 18%, was measured. By varying the cavity magnetic field, high-power generation was observed at 136 GHz in the TE/sub 06/ mode and at 114 GHz in the TE/sub 05/ mode. These frequencies correspond to the high Q modes of the confocal resonator. The low Q modes were either weak or not observed. In this paper, we will review the design procedure for this cavity and present experimental data verifying its effectiveness in reducing the number of modes that can be excited. The confocal waveguide could also be used in high-power, gyro-TWT amplifiers to provide greater operating stability and bandwidth, especially in an overmoded waveguide structure.

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140-GHz gyrotron experiments based on a confocal cavity

The theory, design, and experimental results of a wideband 140-GHz 1-kW pulsed gyro-traveling-wave amplifier (gyro-TWA) are presented. The gyro-TWA operates in the HE 06 mode of an overmoded quasi-optical waveguide using a gyrating electron beam. The electromagnetic theory, interaction theory, design processes, and experimental procedures are described in detail. At 37.7 kV and a 2.7-A beam current, the experiment has produced over 820 W of peak power with a -3-dB bandwidth of 0.8 GHz and a linear gain of 34 dB at 34.7 kV. In addition, the amplifier produced a -3-dB bandwidth of over 1.5 GHz (1.1%) with a peak power of 570 W from a 38.5-kV 2.5-A electron beam. The electron beam is estimated to have a pitch factor of 0.55-0.6, a radius of 1.9 mm, and a calculated perpendicular momentum spread of approximately 9%. The gyro-amplifier was nominally operated at a pulselength of 2 mus but was tested to amplify pulses as short as 4 ns with no noticeable pulse broadening. Internal reflections in the amplifier were identified using these short pulses by time-domain reflectometry. The demonstrated performance of this amplifier shows that it can be applied to dynamic nuclear polarization and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy.

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Demonstration of a 140-GHz 1-kW Confocal Gyro-Traveling-Wave Amplifier

A theory is developed which describes gyro-backward wave oscillators (gyro-BWO's) with arbitrarily relativistic electron beams and tapered external magnetic field and waveguide wall radius. For the case of linear tapering the optimal parameters are found that correspond to highly efficient operation. The frequency tunability as the function of magnetic field and voltage deviations has been analyzed. It is shown how to use the results given in terms of normalized parameters for designing concrete gyro-BWO's. For one concrete design the effect of electron velocity spread on the efficiency has been studied.

Theory of gyro-backward wave oscillators with tapered magnetic field and waveguide cross section

The generalized theory of gyro-travelling-wave tubes operating at arbitrary cyclotron harmonics is developed taking into account the transverse drift of electron guiding centres. In the framework of small-signal theory, the dispersion equation is obtained and analysed and a problem of spurious counterpropagating waves excitation is discussed. The results of the large-signal theory are presented, which predict a high efficiency of operation at the first four cyclotron harmonics.

H. Li

Papers

Theory of gyro-travelling-wave tubes at cyclotron harmonics