High dielectric constant ceramics for ion-electron sources

Ferroelectric disks, coated with proper electrodes, can easily produce a dense plasma cloud when excited with a high-voltage pulse. This plasma can be a source of either electrons or ions depending on the sign of the extracting field set in front of the disk. We present the behavior of the disks operating at high frequency as emitters of both electrons and ions in two experimental configurations: (a) without and (b) with two screening grids. These two screening grids are inserted when the plasma must be confined within the cathode region, The system is capable of providing ion pulses of a few hundred milliamperes, whose length can range from a hundred nanoseconds to dozen microseconds. The electron pulses of energetic electrons have typically an amplitude higher than a couple of amperes. Tests at MHz repetition rate were positive as for stable operation. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.