Flow velocity measurement of zirconium and copper atomic beams generated using a strip electron gun

Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope Separation (AVLIS) is an established method of isotope separation for various elements used in the nuclear industry. Real-time knowledge of vapor flux, density and flow velocity of the atomic beam is essential in the AVLIS process to estimate the throughput, ionization yield and laser repetition rate, respectively. Conventional techniques used in EB-PVD and thin film coating do not provide these parameters independently. The microbalance technique, on the contrary, provides atomic flux, flow velocity and atom density simultaneously. In the present work, flux and flow velocity of copper and zirconium atomic beams are measured using the microbalance technique. The atomic beams are generated by electron beam heating using a strip-type electron gun with the electron beam power ranging from 36 kW up to 100 kW corresponding to the temperature ranges of 1740 to 1950 K (Kn=0.73 to 0.08) for copper and 2606 to 3269 K (Kn=20.95 to 0.12) for zirconium. The measurement on copper was carried...