Definify.com

Definition 2024


travelling-wave_tube

travelling-wave tube

English

a travelling-wave tube

Alternative forms

Noun

travelling-wave tube (plural travelling-wave tubes)

  1. (electronics) A type of vacuum tube which amplifies electromagnetic signals, where the electron gun fires down the tube with an unmodulated electron beam, that passes through an interaction array, where the EM-signal is fed, which interacts with the electron beam, bunching the electrons, and transferring power to the signal.[1]

Usage notes

The TWT's electron gun is typically a thermionic cathodic emitters. The usual design for the interaction grid is a helix wrapped around the beam's transmission tube. Modern TWTs have a depressed collector to recuperate unused power in the electron beam after it has passed through the interaction grid. Modern tubes are metal- instead of glass-encased. Radiator fins may be attached for heat management.[1]

Synonyms

  • TWT (abbreviation)

Hypernyms

Derived terms

  • TWT (abbreviation)
  • cold cathode travelling-wave tube (cold cathode TWT)

References

  1. 1 2 IEEE Spectrum, [ "The Quest for the Ultimate Vacuum Tube"], Carter M. Armstrong, 24 November 2015