High peak power, X-band gyroklystron for linear accelerators

The gyrotron mechanism, which generates coherent radiation at the electron cyclotron frequency, facilitates the use of overmoded cavities and is believed to have excellent potential for development into the high peak power, high gain, efficient amplifier required for a high energy linear accelerator. A 30 MW, 1-2 μs, 10 GHz gyroklystron that is currently under development at the University of Maryland is described. The 30 MW power level represents an enhancement of almost three orders of magnitude over the current state-of-the-art in gyroklystrons. This enhancement will be achieved by utilizing large beam energies and moderately overmoded cavities (TE010). Recent progress is presented on the design and construction of all the major subsystems, including the modulator, the Magnetron Injection Gun used to generate a 500 keV, 160 A annular beam, the magnet system, and the gyrotron circuit predicted to achieve conversion efficiencies in the 30%-42% range