Frequency tunability of a reflex-triode vircator using particle-in-cell modeling

Summary form only given. The results from the development of a three-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) model investigating frequency tunability of a reflex-triode virtual cathode oscillator (vircator) are presented. These efforts have focused upon achieving stable frequency output at many different frequencies in the S, L, and C-bands, from a single tube, using the ICEPIC (Improved Concurrent Electromagnetic Particle-In-Cell) code from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Experimental data from the hard-tube vircator at Texas Tech University (TTU), which operates at background pressures less than 10-9 Torr and utilizes a bimodal carbon fiber cathode and pyrolytic graphite anode, is used to validate simulation results. Additionally, the vircator at TTU is capable of changing the accelerating voltage, the anode-cathode (A-K) gap distance, and the distance of the cavity backwall relative to the position of the A-K gap on the fly without breaking tube vacuum, all in an effort to achieve greater frequency tunability and output power. However, this creates a very large, time-intensive experimental parameter space and makes a simulation model attractive for exploring additional output capabilities. ICEPIC results from a large combination of A-K gap distances, backwall distances, driving voltages, and cavity diameters are presented and compared to experimental results, highlighting frequency tunability of the system from a single tube.