High power microwave research

In recent years the interest in high power microwaves (HPM) has increased significantly and devices have been produced in both the United States of America and Russia that have generated RF powers of the order of 10 Gigawatts across the frequency range 1-10 GHz. Typically these devices have been single shot in operation and have been limited in pulse length to less than 250 nS. In the UK a Research Programme has been instigated, with the support of DRA, to investigate some novel RF sources capable of producing very high powers. The research has aimed at understanding the physics attached to such devices, providing realistic codes for modelling and validating the theoretical predictions with careful experimentation. The author describes the research which has been undertaken in various institutions, namely EEV Ltd, AEA Culham Laboratories and at the Universities of St. Andrews and Strathclyde