Treatment of the electrode surfaces with intense charged-particle flows as a new method for improvement of the vacuum insulation

In 1990 the authors proposed and then developed a new method for enhancement of the electric strength of vacuum insulation. It is based on pretreatment of the electrode surface with a low-energy, high-current electron beam (LEHCEB) of microsecond duration. In the process of this treatment there occurs pulsed melting and even evaporation of the surface layer and, after the completion of the beam action, superfast crystallization of the melt. As a result of this treatment the surface is smoothed and foreign inclusions, impurities, and gases are removed from the surface layers and this leads to a noticeable enhancement of the pulsed electric strength of the vacuum insulation. The authors experiments show that insulating properties can be additionally improved by subsequent high-dose metal-ion implantation. This paper reviews the results of these studies and considers the possibilities of practical implementation of the complex treatment of electrodes with intense pulsed charge particle flows