Analysis of Hollow Cathode Aperture Wall Profile on Pseudospark Discharge-Based Sheet Electron Beam Source

In this article, an investigation has been performed to analyze the role of hollow cathode aperture wall profile on pseudospark (PS) discharge-based single gap sheet electron beam source. A simulation study using COMSOL Multiphysics has been carried out for different hollow cathode aperture wall profile parameters, such as thickness and radius of curvature of aperture wall. The role of hollow cathode aperture wall thickness “t ” and the radius of curvature of aperture wall “R” for different gas pressures, 16-20 Pa, and the corresponding applied gap voltage 16-20 kV have been studied. The hollow cathode aperture wall thickness has been analyzed for the range of ~1-3 mm, keeping the constant aspect ratio 12:1, while the radius of curvature of aperture wall has been analyzed for the range of 0-3 mm for different wall thicknesses. Experimental studies have also been performed to analyze the role of the thickness of the aperture wall on PS discharge. A good correlation has been obtained between the simulation and experimental studies.