Compact Cold-Cathode Electron Buncher

Summary form only given. We are developing a compact high-frequency electron buncher (CCEB) for applications in the next generation of microwave tubes and electron accelerators. The CCEB uses a conventional Pierce-type electron gun with a gated field-emitter-array cathode for the production of short, 3-5 kV, 100-150 mA electron bunches. The width of the electron bunches can be adjusted to be a small portion of the RF period. We have tested these cold-cathodes in DC mode and have been able to obtain up to 120 mA of emission current in a stable manner. We have recently designed a suitable high-frequency assembly for testing of these devices and will report our preliminary results