A new improved slow wave structure for broadband millimeter wave traveling wave tubes

There continues to be increasing demands for high performance broadband traveling wave tubes (TWTs) at millimeter waves (MMW) for communications applications. The high performance requirements for these TWTs include relatively high power, efficiency, and good linearity. The smaller size and the associated effects of the small size on the manufacture of these MMW TWTs, together with the relatively high power requirements, provide motivation for innovative improvements in slow wave structures (SWSs) for high performance, high power MMW TWTs.