Coherent microwave generation from a pseudospark cathode Cherenkov maser

Abstract

Experimental results are presented from the first free electron maser experiment to use a pseudospark electron source. A pulsed, 70–80 kV, 10 A electron beam of normalized brightness 10^{11}Am^{-2}rad^{-2} and current density 1kAcm^{-2} from a pseudospark electron cathode was used to produce coherent microwave radiation via a Cherenkov interaction between the electron beam and the TM_{01} mode of a 60-cm-long alumina-lined waveguide. A gain of 29 dB was measured with an output power of 2 kW in the frequency range 25.5–28.6 GHz. The experimental results were found to be consistent with numerical simulations of Cherenkov amplification.