Cross-Wound Twin Helices for Traveling-Wave Tubes

This paper describes a structure, namely, a cross-wound twin helix which overcomes the disadvantages of a conventional helix for high-voltage traveling-wave tubes. The disadvantages of a single helix suitable for high voltages are: (1) the impedance for electron interaction is reduced because of the energy content of the noninteracting space harmonics, and (2) the high impedance of some of the space harmonics can result in backward-wave oscillation. In a structure consisting of two helices wound in opposite directions, the symmetry of the fields results in most of the electric energy being stored in the fundamental component and most of the magnetic energy in the space harmonics. This results in a higher impedance for the fundamental component and a reduced impedance for the space harmonics. Typical numbers for dimensions suitable for 10-kv operation are an increase of a factor of 2 in the fundamental impedance and a reduction of a factor of about 20 in the −1 space harmonic for the twin helix as compared to the single helix.