A. Samartsev

2.2-MW Record Power of the 170-GHz European Preprototype Coaxial-Cavity Gyrotron for ITER

A 2-MW continuous-wave (CW) 170-GHz coaxial-cavity gyrotron for electron cyclotron heating and current drive in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) is under development within the European Gyrotron Consortium (EGYC1), a cooperation between European research institutions. To support the development of the industrial prototype of a CW gyrotron, a short-pulse tube (preprototype) is used at KIT Karlsruhe (former FZK) for experimental verification of the design of critical components, like the electron gun, beam tunnel, cavity, and quasi-optical RF output coupler. Significant progress has been achieved recently. In particular, RF output power of up to 2.2 MW with 30% output efficiency has been obtained in single-mode operation at 170 GHz. Furthermore, a new RF output system has been designed, with an efficient conversion of the generated RF power into a Gaussian RF output beam. The results have been successful, yielding a Gaussian mode content ~96%.

Experimental Investigations and Analysis of Parasitic RF Oscillations in High-Power Gyrotrons

Megawatt gyrotrons are found to suffer from various parasitic oscillations, in particular, RF oscillations in the beam tunnel prior to the desired interaction zone (the cavity). This paper describes the experimental results from a gyrotron experiment which was dedicated to investigate parasitic oscillations in the beam tunnel and to verify improved beam-tunnel structures. A system for improved spectral measurements and a new analysis method are presented. The results verify theoretical predictions on the parasitic oscillations, and in effect validate the corresponding improved beam-tunnel structure. In addition, other types of parasitic oscillations were observed and explained.

First Operation of a Step-Frequency Tunable 1-MW Gyrotron With a Diamond Brewster Angle Output Window

Experimental results using a step-frequency tunable D-band gyrotron are reported. The short pulse (~3 ms) gyrotron is equipped with an elliptically brazed chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond Brewster angle output window. It is designed for the operation in the frequency range from 111.6 up to 165.7 GHz. Operating parameters for ten different frequencies corresponding to an equal number of different cavity operating modes has been measured. A minimum output power of 830 kW and a peak output power of 1.3 MW have been realized. For all frequencies, the parameters of the RF beam generated by the internal quasioptical converter, such as fundamental Gaussian contents and beam waist, are sufficiently good to allow an efficient coupling of the RF power out of the window. This is the first time a diamond Brewster angle window has been used in a high power gyrotron (~1 MW). Such a system offers the path to a simple and compact window solution for high power broadband applications using gyrotrons.

Efficient Frequency Step-Tunable Megawatt-Class

Results of latest experimental studies on the frequency step-tunable (D-band) megawatt class gyrotron which is under development at IHM (KIT) are presented. The goal of the short pulse (~ 1 ms) experiments was to study the performance of an upgraded cavity with longer cylindrical section. Target was to achieve significantly better efficiencies by introducing a cavity with a higher quality factor. The new design of the cavity was numerically optimized using the EURIDICE code.

D

In recent years, the so called after cavity interaction (ACI) in high power gyrotrons operating in the 100–200 GHz range gained attention as an influence factor on overall efficiency. While investigations concentrated on ACI as a stationary effect until now, recent simulations show that an undesired interaction in the uptaper region can also result in additional parasitic oscillations. In this paper, such non-stationary, dynamic processes are investigated in first simulations and experiments.

-Band Gyrotron

There are cases where gyrotron interaction simulations predict dynamic After-Cavity Interaction (ACI). In dynamic ACI, a mode is excited by the electron beam at a dominant frequency in the gyrotron cavity and, at the same time, this mode is also interacting with the beam at a different frequency in the non-linear uptaper after the cavity. In favor of dynamic ACI being a real physical effect, there are some experimental findings that could be attributed to it, as well as some physical rationale indicating the possibility of a mode being resonant with the beam at different frequencies in different regions. However, the interaction codes used in dynamic ACI prediction up to now are based on simplifications that put questions on their capability of correctly simulating this effect. In this work, the shortcomings of the usual simplifications with respect to dynamic ACI modeling, namely, the trajectory approach and the single-frequency boundary condition, are identified. Extensive simulations of dynamic ACI cases are presented, using several “in-house” as well as commercial codes. We report on the comparison and the assessment of different modeling approaches and their results and we discuss whether, in some cases, dynamic ACI can be a numerical artifact or not. Although the possibility of existence of dynamic ACI in gyrotrons is not disputed, it is concluded that the widely used trajectory approach for gyrotron interaction modeling is questionable for simulating dynamic ACI and can lead to misleading results.

Simulation and experimental investigations on dynamic after cavity interaction (ACI)

In this paper, we present the results of an experimental study on the influence of the lateral misalignment between the axes of the annular electron beam and the cavity on the performance of a 1-MW 140-GHz gyrotron. The subject of the study is of practical interest. On one hand, the discrepancy between numerical simulations of the gyrotron performance and experimental results could by partially attributed to the beam misalignment. On the other, it is in practice very difficult to reach the necessary tolerances in series production of high-power high-frequency (>100 GHz) gyrotrons. The problem actually will become more demanding with the increase of the operating frequency of the working mode because the required accuracy scales with the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave. It is shown that a large displacement of the annular beam from the cavity axis may lead to the excitation of a competing mod which is not excited under normal conditions. The excitation of the main mode is observed, however, at a beam-cavity displacement of up to 0.8 mm.

A comparative study on the modeling of dynamic after-cavity interaction in gyrotrons

Bremsstrahlung X-rays produced at the collector can be used for definition of electron energy distributions in gyrotrons and maybe in other high-power microwave devices. Such a possibility underwent early testing at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology on two gyrotrons. Electron energy distributions calculated on the basis of X-ray spectra measured near the gyrotrons operated at different regimes have plausible shapes and demonstrate good correlation with expected characteristics of the electron beam, thus confirming the viability of the proposed diagnostic technique.

Influence of Annular Beam Displacement on the Performance of a High-Power Gyrotron

The external applied magnetic field plays a main role on the gyrotron operation. Even if the gyrotron design is optimized for the nominal magnetic profile, it is possible the performance to be better for an alternative one. This unexpected result can happen for several reasons, such as the manufacturing imperfections, the misalignment issues, and several unknown factors in gyrotron theory and design. The systematic experimental investigation of the gyrotron in different magnetic profiles is very important for the optimization of the gyrotron operation and for the better understanding of the gyrotron behavior. In this sense, an analytical approach for the definition of the appropriate magnetic profiles based on the beam characteristics instead of the coil currents definition is proposed for a systematic experimental study. Using this technique, operational maps in the space of the important magnetic profile parameters are developed, which are very useful for the characterization of the gyrotron performance...

Reconstruction of Energy Distributions in Electron Beams on the Basis of Bremsstrahlung X-Ray Spectra

A 10 MW, 140 GHz ECRH system with a pulse duration of 30 minutes is currently under construction for the stellarator W7-X at Greifswald. The RF power will be provided by 10 gyrotrons. A European collaboration has been established to develop and build 9 (out of 10) tubes each with an output power of 1 MW for continuous wave (CW) operation. This contribution reports on recent results with the series gyrotrons.