High power wide bandwidth plasma-beam amplifier

High power broad-band stationary-regime microwave amplifier has been developed by authors. This beam-plasma-filled microwave amplifier (plasma TWT) based on hybrid slow-wave structure (SWS) has been developed by the authors as a non-relativistic gas-plasma-filled Coupled Cavity Traveling-Wave Tube (CC TWT) designed as a sealed tube, is characterized by a combination of unique high electron efficiency 35%, pass-band width up to 25%, high output power (up to 20 kW ), not available in a comparable vacuum CC TWT. In S-band plasma TWT the electron beam (3 A, 20 keV) flows through a narrow drift channel in the magnetic field with an induction of 0.25 T, generates cylindrical plasma column (plasma density up to 10/sup 12/cm/sup -3/, electron temperature 20 eV) at a hydrogen pressure of 1x1O/sup -3/Torr. The gas-dynamic system of a sealed-off plasma TWT allows us to vary the pressure of the working gas in the electromagnetic slow wave structure (SWS) from 10/sup -6/ to 10/sup -3/ Torr. In this case, a vacuum difference between the SWS-region and the electron gun is achieved, which enables both the vacuum and plasma operating modes.