Short pulse microwave source with a high prf and low power drain

Apparatus for generating a high voltage, very short pulse, microwave signal operating at a high pulse repetition frequency comprises:

• means for generating said high voltage and means for generating an external trigger at said high pulse repetition frequency;
• first one-shot means responsive to said external trigger for generating a first cyclic signal at said high pulse repetition frequency;
• Sub-modulator means coupled to said first one-shot means and responsive to each cycle of said first cyclic signal for gating said voltage "on" for a first predetermined time, and "off" for a second predetermined time;
• second one-shot means coupled to said first one-shot means and responsive to said first cyclic signal for generating a second cyclic signal, delayed from said first cyclic signal;
• generator means coupled to said sub-modulator means and said second one-shot means, said generator means including a plurality of capacitors being charged in parallel during each cycle that said voltage is gated "on" and being discharged in series in response to said second cyclic signal being received by said generator means during each subsequent cycle that said voltage is gated "off";
• said generator means including a plurality of avalanche transistors arranged in series with said plurality of capacitors as capacitor-transistor pairs, wherein discharging a first capacitor causes its pared transistor to threshold, and each transistor thresholding causes a subsequent capacitor to discharge thereby generating a train of baseband nanosecond rise time short pulses at said high pulse repetition frequency;
• balun means coupled to said generator means and responsive to said train of short pulses for transmitting said high voltage, very short pulse, train of microwave signals operating at said high pulse repetition frequency.