Microwave high power nanosecond switch using multipactor discharge

This paper describes the development of a high power microwave switch utilizing a multipactor discharge which exhibits nanosecond rise, recovery, and switching times. The device is an evacuated cavity of the reentrant type containing two electrodes which are good secondary electron emitters. With r-f power applied, a strong multipactor current discharge takes place between the electrodes causing most of the incident power to be reflected, which describes one operating state of the device. One of the electrodes is d-c insulated from the other, allowing the application of an external control voltage. If a sufficiently high voltage is applied, the discharge can be quenched and the cavity appears as a passive transmission device. The other operating state is thus described as a transmission device.