Characteristics of a high current unidirectional ion beam generator (CMG-REBO)

Intense relativistic electron beam oscillations are established in a short drift region between a real and virtual diode located in the highly converging fringe magnetic fields at one end of a solenoid. By locating the virtual diode at the peak of an 8:1 magnetic mirror only 5% of the energy and 1% of the deuterons present in the real diode are observed to be lost through the virtual cathode. In this sense, the system is effectively a unidirectional ion beam generator. When operated at ~0.4Ω impedance up to 10¹¹ neutrons have been produced in a thick target CD₂, coated cathode. This infers deuteron currents up to 300 kA or 40% of the total current.