Characteristics of Pseudospark-Sourced Beam and its Application in THZ Sources

Pseudospark (PS) discharge is a low-pressure gas discharge characterized by a rapid breakdown phase with the generation of a high current density electron beam, which is over 100 times higher than a thermionic cathode. The PS-sourced beam can also transport a long distance without the need for an external guiding magnetic field. Such features are attractive as beam sources in terahertz wave generation. At high frequency, the conventional vacuum electron devices suffer a quick drop in the power level due to the small cross-section of the beam tunnel and the limit of current density from a thermionic cathode.