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The micro-discharge effect limits the development of high-frequency microwave power components to miniaturization and integration. Therefore, it has become a focus of research to effectively suppress the micro-discharge effect, increase the micro-discharge threshold, and strengthen the environmental stability of high-frequency microwave devices. In this study, different elemental ratios of carbon (C)/silver (Ag)/titanium (Ti) composite films were obtained by multi-target magnetron co-sputtering technology and then systematically analyzed for micro-discharge effects. When the doping ratio of C/Ag/Ti was 3.538/1/0.013, the corresponding maximum secondary electron emission coefficient (δmax) decreased to 1.01 owing to the suppression of secondary electron emission by the increase in the content of sp2 hybrid bond. The micro-discharge threshold of Ku band waveguide filters coated with moderate C/Ag/Ti composite films showed an optimal performance of 10 000−12 500 W, which was increased by approximately 20 times. Moreover, the microstructure of the composite films exhibited higher density and flatness with a tiny increase in the titanium doping ratio, representing good environmental stability. Thus, the effective suppression of the secondary electron emission yield, significant improvement in the micro-discharge threshold, and enhancement of the environment stability of microwave components could be realized simultaneously by reasonably controlling the content of titanium in silver and titanium co-doped carbon-based composite films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-pressure discharge events have a major impact on a satellite's electrical performance. Most notably, a number of serious issues arise from the inability to directly modify satellite systems that operate in orbit. Accurate analysis of electrical performance is crucial for mitigating the issues arising from the low-pressure discharge phenomenon. Complex structures, such as intricate features and curved structures, are frequently used in satellite systems' enormous microwave components. In this case, the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) approach proposes the hybrid implicit–explicit (HIE) algorithm with a domain decomposition method to effectively simulate complex structures under the low-pressure discharge phenomenon. The bilinear transform method is adjusted in accordance with the implicit equations for the anisotropic magnetized plasma environment caused by the discharge. To end unbounded lattices, a higher-order perfectly matched layer is used at the boundary. An example of a microwave connector structure is used to show how well the algorithm performs electrically. According to the findings, the suggested algorithm behaves in a way that is consistent with both the traditional algorithm and the experiments. Furthermore, the phenomenon of low-pressure discharge has a notable impact on the electrical performance of microwave components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The micro-discharge effect is a failure mechanism that often appeared in space microwave devices under vacuum conditions, such as RF (radio frequency) cavity, RF satellite missile, and antenna launching communication system. How to control micro-discharge effectively and simply has become a research hotspot. In this paper, we have prepared a series of doping silver (Ag)/carbon (C) composite films by double target magnetron sputtering technology and have significantly reduced the maximum secondary electron emission coefficient (δmax) from 2.522 to 1.04 when the doping ratio of Ag/C is 1.345. Theoretically, the continuous increase of sp2 hybrid bond content tuned by the existing Ag nanoparticles has a greater contribution to the conductivity and inhibition of secondary electron emission in the Ag/C composite films. Meanwhile, the gradually emerged "multi-trap" surface structure with the increase of Ag doping content has further increased the collision between excited secondary electrons and free electrons, achieving an obvious inhibition effect. The results demonstrate that secondary electron emission can be suppressed effectively by tuning the structural feature of two kinds of compounded materials with low δmax. It is of great significance in physical mechanism analysis and design of the new doping process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to establish a numerical simulation model for the multipactor effect in a partially dielectric-loaded parallel-plate waveguide, with a focus on the investigation of multipactor saturation mechanisms for different dielectric materials with different secondary emission yield (SEY) properties. An electrostatic method involving the radio-frequency fields, space charge fields, and the dynamics of charge accumulation on the dielectric surface and solutions for electrostatic fields are proposed. The evolution of the electron number, accumulated charge, and secondary electron multiplication rate for different input voltages and SEY properties of the dielectric materials are studied using numerical calculations. The results show that two physical multipactor phenomena occur in a dielectric-loaded parallel-plate waveguide: a self-sustaining phenomenon, which means that the electron population reaches a saturation level, and a self-extinguishing phenomenon. The latter can be divided into two cases: in one, the number of electrons undergoes a process of multiplication, saturation, and reduction, and in the other, the number of electrons disappears after their population reaches a maximum. Furthermore, a multipactor susceptibility diagram for SEY curves of different dielectric materials is constructed. The results show that the multipactor effect is suppressed when the maximum of the SEY curve is less than 1.3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One problem with current 3D printed microwave components is that they usually have more surface roughness than components manufactured with traditional machining processes. To estimate the multipactor threshold of 3D printed microwave components, it is important to evaluate the total secondary electron yield (TSEY) of the random rough surface. In this work, taking copper as an example, we conduct TSEY simulations for random rough surfaces. First, we generate both isotropic and anisotropic Gaussian type random rough surfaces; then, the dependence of the TSEY on both the roughness and correlation length is studied using Monte-Carlo simulations. Results show that when the root-mean-square roughness increases from 0 to 30 μm, the maximum TSEY increases slowly at first and then decreases rapidly. In other words, roughness can also enhance and not just suppress the TSEY. The results can be interpreted as follows: for a relatively smooth/rough surface, the TSEY enhancement/suppression induced by oblique incidence/a shadowing effect plays a dominant role. Simulation results also show that correlation length has a notable effect on the TSEY. Furthermore, for anisotropic surfaces, the azimuthal angle also influences the TSEY. Compared with currently published work, we provide an optional evaluation method for the TSEY of random rough surfaces. The predictions in this work not only confirm existing observations (the TSEY suppression effect) but also present new predictions (the TSEY enhancement effect and the azimuthal angle effect). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multipactor, a frequent detrimental effect in space high power systems, can degrade the performance of space microwave components or even cause devastation. Surface coatings with a low secondary electron yield (SEY) have been verified to mitigate multipactor efficiently, and some literature indicates that titanium nitride (TiN) coating is an excellent multipactor suppressor due to its recognized low SEY, whereas so far, the theoretical analysis for interpreting secondary electron emission (SEE) characteristics of TiN coatings is scarce. In this work, we experimentally and theoretically investigate the SEE characteristics of TiN coatings. We fabricate seven TiN coatings at different N2 concentrations by RF sputtering. The microscopic analysis indicates that the nanostructured TiN coatings are more likely to be formed at low N2 concentration, inversely, the compact TiN films are more likely to be formed at high N2 concentration. The SEE measurement shows that the nanostructured TiN coatings are more efficient to trap electrons than the compact TiN films do. Furthermore, via measuring resistivity, we find a novel regularity that the variation in true SEY largely depends on the resistivity for compact TiN films. Namely, the true SEY of compact TiN films linearly decreases as their resistivity exponentially declines. Then, we establish an equation to describe the true SEY as a function of resistivity via applying the semiconductor conductivity theory to Dionne's SEE model. The equation qualitatively interprets the experimental regularity. This work presents a probability to control the SEE level of TiN coatings by adjusting resistivity and is of significance to comprehend the SEE of semiconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]