Characterization of a Ka-band Sheet-Beam Coupled-Cavity Slow-Wave Structure

This paper investigates the properties of a three-slot doubly periodic staggered-ladder sheet-beam coupled-cavity slow-wave structure (SWS) developed at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. The structure is overmoded with complicated mode crossings and field structures. The staggered-ladder structure is compared to round-beam structures via full-wave electromagnetic simulations and experimental measurements. We explore the application of this SWS in a traveling-wave tube amplifier.