High-Voltage, Fast Turn-on and Turn-off Diamond Switch

51015-98-I High-Voltage, Fast Turn-on and Turn-off Diamond Switch--Alameda Applied Sciences Corp., 2235 Polvorosa Avenue, Suite 230, San Leandro, CA 94577-2249; (510) 483-4156 Dr. Rahul R. Prasad, Principal Investigator Dr. Mahadevan Krishnan, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG03-98ER82524 Amount: $75,000 Improvements in failure rates and reliability of current gas switches used for particle accelerator research are needed. This project will develop a synthetic diamond switch which have shown promise as a replacement for thyratrons and other gas switches currently used in high voltage pulsed modulators. Phase I will demonstrate concept feasibility by testing prototype switches at up to 50-80 kV hold-off and demonstrating ~10 nanosecond turn-on and turn-off. Phase II would fully develop a diamond switch to replicate a high voltage thyratron¿s capabilities. The primary goal of the Phase I project is to extend current 15 kV hold-off technology to up to 50-80 kV in a single synthetic diamond membrane, while also achieving ~1 kA/cm2 current density and less than 30 nanosecond turn-on and turn-off. Secondary objectives are to study repetition rates of the switch by firing two or more ~1 microsecond pulses in a burst, with ~1 microsecond inter-pulse delays. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: The product of this program would be a hardware item that could be used within the accelerator research community. Beyond this application, the switch should also find use as a key enabling technology in many different high power modulators for laser drivers, RF sources, and other applications._