Investigation Into the Operating Characteristics of Fused Quartz Vacuum Surface Flashover Switch

Vacuum surface flashover switch is a promising technique scheme of high repetitive frequency fast-closing switch applied to dielectric wall accelerator. In this paper, the switch is experimentally investigated, and a nanosecond pulse with 2.02-ns effective rise time is obtained. For a cylinder-fused quartz dielectric, the breakdown field of the switch is near 55 kV/cm, and the value for the frustoconical-shaped dielectric exceeds 120 kV/cm with a lifetime up to 69000 discharges. The repetitive frequency ability of the switch is better than 100 Hz, and the breakdown voltage increases slightly with higher frequency.