INFLUENCE OF THE RELATIVISTIC ELECTRON BEAM SPECTRAL CHARACTERISTICS ON THE INSTABILITY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS AT NEARLIMITING CURRENT

Abstract

The paper presents the results of the numerical research of the influence of spectral characteristics of the relativistic electron beam, restricted by a spatial charge, on the instability development at near-limiting current. The beam system model is described permitting to calculate with minor errors the process characteristics for both narrow and wide electron energy spread in the beam. Instability development phases are defined and their duration is calculated. The dependences of instability development time and virtual cathode steady-state operation on the relativistic electron beam spectrum width are determined.