KA-Band RF Transmission Line Components for a High-Gradient Linear Accelerator

65395 Efforts are underway to develop a high-gradient electron accelerator operating at 34 GHz, to be driven by a newly-developed radio frequency (rf) magnicon amplifier. Yet few corresponding high-power components have been developed to provide rf power manipulation and transmission between the magnicon and the accelerator. This project will develop a variety of high-power Ka-band rf components to remedy this situation. These include waveguide tapers, right-angle miter bends, windows, mode converters, power combiners, mode launchers, phase shifters, dual directional couplers, and loads. In Phase I, designs for all the components were developed; cold test versions of a taper, miter bend, mode converter, and power combiner were built and tested; and high-power versions of the dual directional coupler and load were built and installed on the magnicon output waveguides. In Phase II, high-power, high-vacuum prototypes of all the components will be built and tested up to 45 MW. Peak power limits for the components will be determined using a quasi-optical rf pulse compressor that is expected to produce levels up to 300 MW. The components and the magnicon will be configured to a research and development facility for a future high-energy electron-positron collider. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: Successful development should create demand for a number of sets to feed a test accelerator, and ultimately thousands of such sets would be needed for a full-scale multi-TeV electron-positron collider. Other commercial uses include components for millimeter-wave radar and millimeter-wave communication systems.