Depressed collector operation of electron beam device

Claim 1

IN A LINEAR ELECTRON BEAM DEVICE OPERATING WITH A DEPRESSED COLLECTOR POTENTIAL THE COMBINATION COMPRISING ELECTRON EMITTING AND BEAM FORMING MEANS FOR PRODUCING AN AXIALLY EXTENDING ELECTRON BEAM HAVING KNOWN PERVEANCE AND RADIUS, THE RADIUS OF THE BEAM BEING SMALL COMPARED TO THE AXIAL EXTENT OF THE BEAM, AN ELECTRON BEAM COLLECTOR AXIALLY SPACED FROM SAID EMITTING MEANS FOR TERMINATING SAID BEAM, SAID COLLECTOR HAVING A SURFACE EXTENDING RADIALLY FROM A POINT ON SAID AXIS AND BEING ELECTRICALLY BIASED AT A POSITIVE POTENTIAL WITH RESPECT TO SAID EMITTING MEANS, ELECTRON BEAM UTILIZATION MEANS DISPOSED INTERMEDIATE SAID EMITTING MEANS AND SAID COLLECTOR, AN AXIALLY APERTURED MEMBER POSITIONED ADJACENT TO THE END OF SAID UTILIZATION MEANS NEAREST SAID COLLECTOR, SAID MEMBER BEING ELECTRICALLY BIASED AT A POTENTIAL MORE POSITIVE THAN THE POTENTIAL OF SAID COLLECTOR, AND ELECTROSTATIC FIELD FORMING MEANS DISPOSED COAXIALLY ABOUT AND OUTSIDE OF SAID BEAM IN THE REGION BETWEEN SAID MEMBER AND SAID COLLECTOR FOR PRESENTING SUBSTANTIALLY A LINE SOURCE OF POTENTIAL ABOUT SAID BEAM, SAID ELECTROSTATIC FIELD FORMING MEANS COMPRISING AN APERTURED, GRIDLESS DISC HAVING AN AXIAL THICKNESS NO GREATER THAN TWO-TENTHS OF THE AXIAL SEPARATION BETWEEN SAID MEMBER AND SAID COLLECTOR, THE APERTURED, GRIDLESS DISC BEING ELECTRICALLY BIASED AT THE POTENTIAL OF THE EMITTING MEANS, THE AXIAL SEPARATION OF SAID MEMBER AND SAID COLLECTOR, THE AXIAL POSITION OF SAID ELECTROSTATIC FIELD FORMING MEANS BETWEEN SAID MEMBER AND SAID COLLECTOR, THE RADIAL SPACING OF THE INNER EDGE OF THE APERTURE OF SAID GRIDLESS DISC FROM THE ELECTRON BEAM, AND THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ELECTRON BEAM BEING PROPORTIONED TO ASSIMILATE A SPACE CHARGE CONDITION BETWEEN SAID MEMBER AND COLLECTOR WHEREIN THERE IS EATABLISHED ALONG SAID BEAM BOUNDARY A PREDETERMINED AXIAL POTENTIAL DISTRIBUTION THAT DECREASES IN GOING AWAY FROM SAID MEMBER AND REACHES A MINIMUM INTERMEDIATE SAID MEMBER AND COLLECTOR AND WHEREIN THE TRANSVERSE POTENTIAL GRADIENT THROUGH SAID BEAM IS SUBSTANTIALLY ZERO AT SAID MINIMUM, SAID MINIMUM POTENIAL BEING GREATER THAN THE POTENTIAL OF SAID EMITTER MEANS TO PERMIT SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE ELECTRON BEAM CURRENT FLOW TO SAID COLLECTOR, SAID AXIAL POTENTIAL DISTRIBUTION THEN RISING AT LEAST 30 VOLTS FROM SAID MINIMUM TO REACH THE POTENTIAL AT THE COLLECTOR.