Reversed Cherenkov radiation amplifier with compact structure and high efficiency

Abstract

Based on the reversed Cherenkov radiation excited in metamaterials, a novel S-band reversed Cherenkov radiation amplifier (RCRA) with two output ports is proposed in this paper. Its metamaterial slow-wave structure (MSWS) consists of a hollow circular waveguide periodically loaded with all-metal double-ridge complementary electric split-ring resonators (CeSRRs). The CeSRR exhibits subwavelength and strong resonance characteristics, which lead to miniaturization and high interaction impedance of the MSWS. The period of the MSWS is optimized using the phase velocity jump technique to further increase the output power and electronic efficiency. The simulation results demonstrate that when the microwave signal of 7.8 W at 2.286 GHz is inputted at port 2, the output power at port 1 is 307 W, and the saturated output power and saturated gain at port 3 are 5.48 kW and 28.47 dB, respectively. Notably, the total electronic efficiency of the RCRA is predicted as 33.84%. The RCRA features high electronic efficiency and miniaturization and may meet special application scenarios that require two output microwave signals at the same frequency.