High-Current Pulsed-Repetitive Electron Accelerator “Sinus-320”: Formation and Diagnostics of a Wide-Aperture Beam

Abstract

A wide-aperture (16 cm × 27 cm) source of e-beams for sterilization of plastic packages based on a“SINUS- 320” high-current accelerator with 450 keV energy, 9 kA current, 12 ns pulse duration, and repetition rate up to 100 Hz is described. A metal-dielectric cathode forms e-beam by explosive emission during a few nanoseconds of the voltage pulse. A high degree of e-beam uniformity can be achieved because of a large number of triple points (~800) and of electron scattering in a foil and in a 3 cm air layer for characteristic electron free paths in air up to half a meter.