CESIUM VAPOR CATHODE STUDY,
Abstract
The objective of this contract is to develop cesiumplasma cathodes and guns capable of yielding stable electron beams with current densities of 100 A/sq cm or higher and to investigate the utility of such beams for tube applications. Stable kilovolt electron beams with current densities up to 800 A/sq cm were extracted from a cesium-vapor tungsten hollow cathode. A highly directed vapor flow was provided along the cathode surface and away from the electron exit aperture. This permitted the application of extraction voltages from zero to 1.2 kV without gas breakdown or oscillations. Several other tubes are being designed using the directed cesium-vapor feed. Two tubes are being designed for studies of long, magnetically confined beams which are extracted from hollow cathodes. Another tube utilizes cesium feed through an ionizing porous tungsten anode; an L-cathode opposite the anode provides the electrons. Current extraction from the plasma takes place through an aperture in the anode. A silver chloride ring was successfully employed as a demountable seal in a cesium-vapor tube. Work on such seals and on hydrogen removal from commercial cesium was carried out to allow the construction of the needed test tubes.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1964
- Accession Number
- AD0608920
Entities
People
- A. L. Eichenbaum
- F. H. Norman
- H. Sobol
Organizations
- RCA Corporation