Ultrawideband generators

Phillip A. Pincosy; Peter Poulsen; Jasper Jim Morrison

doi:10.1117/12.59048

1 May 1992 Ultrawideband generators

Phillip A. Pincosy, Peter Poulsen, Jasper Jim Morrison

Proceedings Volume 1631, Ultrawideband Radar; (1992) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.59048
Event: OE/LASE '92, 1992, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Abstract

High-power ultra-wideband pulses with equivalent center frequences of 10 GHz require picosecond switching times of high electric fields. We are developing a high-pressure gas switch that is designed to store several joules of energy. The switch has an overvoltaged gap that is pulse charged to operating voltages before the electron avalanche causes the voltage to collapse. Depending on the gas pressure (designed for up to 100 atm) and the electric field, the voltage collapse time can be hundreds of picoseconds down to a few picoseconds. Uniform development of the avalanche is initiated by photoionization from a bare spark or an ultraviolet laser. The pulse-power charging system is designed to charge the transmission line in a few nanoseconds. The stored energy that would flow as a post-pulse component is to be minimized. Tests of the repetition rate for the switch are part of the development. Data in this paper indicate the achieved gap electric field, the voltage collapse time, and the launched pulse power and energy down a transmission line.

Citation Download Citation

Phillip A. Pincosy, Peter Poulsen, and Jasper Jim Morrison "Ultrawideband generators", Proc. SPIE 1631, Ultrawideband Radar, (1 May 1992); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.59048

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