Development of high power; high pressure, rep-rate, liquid dielectric switches

The University of Missouri-Columbia (UMC) is developing high power liquid dielectric switches intended to address future high power microwave (HPM) applications. Although requirements encompass a broad parameter space, the initial switch concept focuses on a 250-300kV output switch operated at 100 pps that will be scaled to 1MV. Failure to clear high electric field regions prior to the next charge cycle results in prefires, thereby limiting the maximum achievable repetition rate. Elevating the operating pressure, hence minimizing the bubble size and temporal properties, has alleviated this problem. This paper presents the design philosophy, modeling, and experimental results obtained from a single shot prototype operated in oil at pressures ranging from atmospheric pressure to greater than 13.8 MPa (2000 psi).