Development of a high voltage, high PRF PFN Marx generator

A PFN Marx generator which has been designed for repetitive operation is described. The device is nominally capable of generating an output voltage of 1 MV into a matched load at a pulse repetition frequency (PRF) of several hundred Hz. The output voltage pulse is rectangular in profile with a duration of 450 ns and a risetime of 40 ns. There are twenty stages in the generator, with each stage comprising 50 m of HVDC 50 /spl Omega/ co-axial transmission line. This results in an overall output impedance of 1 k/spl Omega/ and a stored energy of 500 J at a charging voltage of 100 kV. The generator is operated in repetitive mode using a resonant charging inductor/diode, an in-line triggered charge transfer switch and an intermediate capacitor store.