Broad band tunable energy electron beam pulser

An ElectroMagnetic Mechanical Pulser (“EMMP”) comprising:

• an input configured to accept a continuous input electron beam;
• a Traveling Wave Metallic Comb Stripline kicker (“TWMCS” kicker) located downstream of the input and having an internal passage through which the electron beam passes, the TWMCS kicker being configured to impose an oscillatory transverse deflection on the electron beam according to at least one of a transverse time-varying electric field and a transverse time-varying magnetic field generated within the TWMCS kicker by a first RF traveling wave propagated through the TWMCS kicker;
• a Chopping Collimating Aperture (“CCA”) located downstream of the TWMCS kicker and configured to block the electron beam when its deflection exceeds a threshold maximum or minimum, thereby chopping the electron beam into a chopped stream of electron pulses having an electron pulse repetition rate and duty cycle;
• an output configured to allow electron pulses to emerge from the EMMP as an output stream of electron pulses having a pulse repetition rate and a pulse duty cycle;
• and
• a vacuum chamber surrounding all elements of the EMMP and configured to provide a vacuum that is sufficient to allow the electron beam to pass through the EMMP without significant attenuation thereof by residual gasses, wherein:
• the TWMCS kicker includes at least one pair of opposing combs;
• each of said opposing combs of said pair of combs comprises a strip from which a plurality of substantially identical, equally spaced-apart blocks extend as teeth;
• the combs of the pair of combs are spaced apart with teeth facing inward such that the internal passage through which the electron beam passes is between the teeth of the pair of combs;
• the pair of combs includes an RF energy input proximal to a first end thereof and an RF energy output proximal to an opposite, second end thereof;
• the teeth of the pair of combs are configured to control a phase velocity of a traveling RF wave propagating from the first end to the second end so that it is matched to an electron velocity of the electron beam;
• and
• all exposed surfaces of the pair of combs are electrically conductive.