A 20 keV electron gun system for the electron irradiation experiments

An electron gun consisting of cathode, focusing electrode, control electrode and anode has been designed and fabricated for the electron irradiation experiments. This electron gun can provide electrons of any energy over the range 1–20 keV, with current upto 50 μA. This electron gun and a Faraday cup are mounted in the cylindrical chamber. The samples are fixed on the Faraday cup and irradiated with electrons at a pressure ∼10−7 mbar. The special features of this electron gun system are that, at any electron energy above 1 keV, the electron beam diameter can be varied from 5 to 120 mm on the Faraday cup mounted at a distance of 200 mm from the anode in the chamber. The variation in the electron current over the beam spot of 120 mm diameter is less than 15% and the beam current stability is better than 5%. This system is being used for studying the irradiation effects of 1–20 keV energy electrons on the space quality materials in which the irradiation time may vary from a few tens of seconds to hours.