Experimental Study on Backward Wave Oscillators Using Dielectric Discharge Cold Cathodes

Abstract

Herein, we investigated the characteristics of a backward wave oscillator using a dielectric discharge cold cathode (DDCC) in a weakly relativistic region with energies less than 100 keV. The DDCC comprises a copper disc electrode and a ceramic tube; the DDCC exhibited a circular burn pattern with a voltage less than about 30 kV. When a Marx generator was used as a high-voltage source, two microwave oscillations (first phase and second phase) were observed. Within 80 periods of the slow-wave structure, we observed microwave oscillation at the π-point with a voltage of about 30 kV and then detected a microwave signal of about 910 - 5500 mW.