Diehl Bgt Defence Gmbh Co., Kg

Diehl Munitionssysteme Gmbh & Co. Kg

Diehl Munitionssysteme Gmbh & Co.

General Atomics, Inc.

Diehl Bgt Defence Gmbh & Co.

Geoffrey Staines

Josef Dommer

Jürgen Urban

Tilo Ehlen

Frank Sonnemann

Helmut Hofmann

Jürgen Bohl

Frederick William MacDougall

J&uuml;rgen Bohl

Andreas Ganghofer

A microwave generator, which includes a housing having two mutually opposite electrodes which are separated via an electrode intermediate space which is filled with a dielectric, and with the electrodes having a spark gap between them, which breaks down in order to emit microwaves when a high voltage is applied. The electrode intermediate space () can be at least partially filled with a second dielectric (), which has a different dielectric constant compared with that of the first dielectric () which is located between the electrodes () in order to vary the microwave frequency, whereby the second dielectric () is held in a reservoir () which communicates with the electrode intermediate space ().

Microwave generator

High-voltage switch, in particular for a microwave generator, which includes a spark gap which breaks down in order to switch when a high voltage is applied provided is a plurality of parallel-connected spark gaps (), each having at least one electrode () with a series-connected fuse () which is irreversibly destroyed when the respective spark gap () breaks down.

High-voltage switch having parallel spark gaps each with a serially connected fuse and use thereof for a microwave generator

In order to make it possible to direct sufficient microwave energy at a target with an electronic device which is to be interfered with or to be destroyed, the beams () from at least two antenna arrays () are focused on an effective area () in the vicinity of that target, preferably from a vehicle () which is equipped with these arrays (). For effective super-imposition of the emitted microwave energy () in the emission direction of in each case one of the arrays (), the use of an arc for discharging the capacitance () of the resonator via its spark gap () is observed, and is recorded quasi-continuously optoelectronically. The electrode separation of the spark gap () or the fluid pressure of the dielectric in the vicinity of the spark gap () is then varied by control elements such that all of the spark gaps () in an array () ignite virtually at the same time, so that their discharge current pulses which lead to the emission of the microwave energy () start virtually in phase.

The production and emission of high-energy microwave pulses are made possible by means of a device with a particularly compact design if the capacitor column (-) of the Marx generator () whose series circuit conventionally itself feeds a microwave generator with a matched antenna geometry, is now itself used&#x2014;dispensing with the microwave generator and its antenna&#x2014;directly as a resonator and Hertzian antenna dipole (). Its oscillation response can be optimized by triggered spark gaps () for the switching of capacitors (), and by means of plates () connected at the ends, in order to increase the stray capacitances.

Method and device for production and emission of a high-power microwave pulse

In order to decouple the low-voltage charging source and its electrical drive from the high voltage which occurs in a Marx generator when the capacitor bank is switched from parallel connection to series connection, the high-voltage cable which is used on the output side and in which the conductive core is surrounded by a semiconductor for potential matching is also used on the input side, but for high-voltage decoupling after removal of the current-carrying core. Only the semiconductor in the high-voltage cable therefore remains as a resistance line for the small charging current into the parallel-connected capacitor bank of the Marx generator.

Marx generator and use of a high-voltage cable for high-voltage decoupling

The median frequency in the emission from a microwave generator (), which operates in a pulsed manner, is shifted when the generator () operates between passive reflectors () whose axes are parallel thereto. In the axial direction, the reflectors () are approximately the same length (L) as the generator (), with length matching through telescopic rods being preferable. However, the frequency is governed primarily by the distance (D) between the reflectors (-) between which the generator () is operated. Once desired resonance conditions have been found, for example for injection of microwave radiation into the mechanical structure of an external arrangement, this frequency relationship can be fixed by the magnitude of the length of the preferably telescopic coupling piece () between the resonator () and the antenna ().

Microwave generator with variable frequency emission

Capacitor based pulse forming networks and methods are provided which require fewer inductors are that pulsed more frequently to provide a smaller, lower mass, and lower inductance pulse forming network having better pulse shaping characteristics than conventional pulse forming networks. In one implementation, the invention can be characterized as a capacitor based pulse forming network comprising a plurality of inductors adapted to be coupled to a load, a plurality of capacitor units, and a plurality of switches. Each switch couples a respective capacitor unit to a respective inductor, wherein multiple capacitor units are coupled to each inductor by separate switches. The plurality of switches are adapted to non-simultaneously discharge at least some of the multiple capacitor units to provide non-simultaneous pulses through a given inductor to the load and not through other inductors. The non-simultaneous pulses form at least a portion of an output pulse waveform to the load.

Capacitor pulse forming network with multiple pulse inductors

A microwave generator having a central electrode () which at the front end has a radiating element () and an external electrode () which coaxially surrounds the central electrode () along an axially extending resonator portion (), wherein the two electrodes (and) are of a rotationally symmetrical configuration and define a spark gap () which sparks across when a high voltage is applied and radiates microwaves by way of the resonator portion () and the radiating element () of the central electrode (). The spark gap () is in the form of an annular spark gap, which is determined by a connection element () which projects at the rear end axially centrally away from the central electrode () and an annular edge () of the external electrode (), the edge being provided coaxially with respect to the connection element (). The central electrode () and the external electrode () are arranged in a housing sleeve () of an electrically insulating material. The housing sleeve () preferably has an extension () defining a space () in which there is arranged a high voltage source (), which is electrically conductively connected to the electrodes (and) of the microwave generator ()

A microwave generator () has a parallel connection of series connections of uncontrolled discharge spark gaps () and charge storage means () which are charged up by way of charging resistors () and an inductor () common to all parallel connections, from a high voltage generator (), until the respective spark gaps () short-circuit by way of arcs and the storage means () are discharged again by way of the inductor (). The oscillating short-circuit currents which thus occur in stochastic steep-edged manner and which are superimposed on each other in the inductor () are emitted by way of an antenna () connected in single-pole manner thereto in the form of a high-energy microwave spectrum which is wide-band in accordance with the arc switching speed, with a spectral key point which is determined by the inductor (). Such an operative system which can be used as a non-lethal interference or jamming device in relation to communication connections and in relation to the function of electronic circuits can be embodied in the size of a manually portable case or also in the form of a payload for a submunition projectile, a rocket or a drone and can thus be used over a wide operative range.

The superimposition of the microwave fields of an array () of microwave generators (), with self-firing spark gaps () for the discharge of storage devices (), which are charged up to a high voltage, results in an increase in field strength and a capacity for influencing the frequency spectrum of the emitted high-energy high-frequency field and the emission direction thereof.

Microwave generator having two electrodes which are provided in a housing and are separated via a spark gap which breaks down when a high voltage is applied in order to emit microwaves, in which the first electrode () is in the form of a pot, and the other, inner electrode () engages over the first electrode on the outside at a distance therefrom at least over a part of the length thereof with the pot-shaped electrode () having a bottom section () which concurrently forms the side termination of the housing.

Intensive microwave radiation in particular of great band width and energy over a relatively long period of time in the form of long pulse packets with a high pulse repetition frequency and a very high frequency spectrum can be achieved if microwave irradiation is effected during the discharge of a capacitive high-voltage generator () by way of the antenna () into a series of successive capacitors () to be connected in parallel. They are preferably constructed in the form of a concentric stack, connected to the antenna (), of which the outer electrodes () which are at a reference potential are in the form of a continuous tube within which annular electrodes () are disposed on a carrier () in axially spaced relationship with each other in such a way that at the same time they act as the electrodes of arc switches () for successively switching on subsequent capacitors (). The switch response characteristics and the charging time constants of the capacitor () which is respectively switched on therewith and the number thereof determine the length of the packet of high-frequency individual pulses () and thus the radiated microwave energy which can be still further increased by an increase in the capacitance of the capacitors ().

Microwave generator and method of radiating microwave energy

A very compact interference frequency generator () which emits with an extremely wide band width and extremely powerfully is afforded by the combination of a mechanical pulse generator () with two piezoelectric pillars () which are disposed axially in succession and which can be axially acted upon by the pulse generator () and which are electrically connected in series in opposite relationship and which are electrically conductively connected with their mutually remote ends () to electrodes () which extend parallel to the piezoelectric pillars () to an electrically conductive coupling portion () between the piezoelectric pillars () where they end as electrodes () of an axial spark gap and at the same time spark gaps () which are oriented inclinedly radially towards the coupling portion ().

High voltage generator, especially for using as a noise frequency generator

For a compact microwave generator ( ) with powerfully wide-band microwave radiation in which there is a marked resonance increase whose frequency center of gravity is variable in order to be able to adapt the power center in respect of the radiated wavelengths to the geometrical structure of a circuit configuration to be disturbed, a conductor ( ) which coaxially surrounds the spark gap ( ) between the electrodes ( ) is electrically connected to one of the two electrodes ( ) mechanically adjustably in its effective length as a variable resonator.

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Röthenbach, Germany

Geoffrey Staines