Title :
Gated field-emission cathodes for microwave devices
Author :
McIntyre, P.M. ; Demroff, H.P. ; Elliott, S.M. ; Lee, B. ; Legg, J.D. ; Pang, Y. ; Parker, D.L. ; Popovic, M. ; Stewart, M.D. ; Wiechold, M.H. ; Yu, W. ; Yue, W.K.
Author_Institution :
Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX, USA
Abstract :
The Accelerator Research Laboratory at Texas A&M University is developing gated field-emitter cathodes for microwave and millimeter-wave applications. The cathode consists of an array of gated field-emitters which are modulated at microwave frequency to produce a fully modulated electron beam. Field-emitter structures under development include gated knife-edge arrays, reentrant cusps, and porous silicon. All feature extremely high transconductance, low noise, and rugged structure as compared to earlier field-emitter structures. The field emission at the cathode surface is discussed. The knife-edge emitter geometry is described. The inverted cusp cathodes are considered. The porous silicon emitting surfaces are described.<>
Keywords :
cathodes; electron accelerators; electron field emission; microwave tubes; vacuum microelectronics; Accelerator Research Laboratory; fully modulated electron beam; gated field-emitter cathodes; gated knife-edge arrays; high transconductance; inverted cusp cathodes; low noise; microwave devices; microwave frequency; millimeter-wave applications; reentrant cusps; rugged structure; Cathodes; Electron beams; Frequency modulation; Laboratories; Microwave antenna arrays; Microwave devices; Microwave frequencies; Optical modulation; Silicon; Transconductance;
Conference_Titel :
Particle Accelerator Conference, 1991. Accelerator Science and Technology., Conference Record of the 1991 IEEE
Conference_Location :
San Francisco, CA, USA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-0135-8
DOI :
10.1109/PAC.1991.164420
