Microwave discharge apparatus and method with dual function priming resonator

Claim 2

Microwave apparatus comprising: planar microwave transmission means for conveying electrical energy signals of microwave radio frequency between nodes in a microwave electrical network; gas-filled capillary tube means electromagnetically coupled with said transmission means for selectively modifying the signal transmission characteristics thereof; a source of capillary gas priming microwave energy; and microwave resonator means coupled with the gas in said gas-filled capillary tube means and with said source of gas priming microwave energy for both conveying said priming energy to said capillary tube means gas and determining the microwave operating frequency of said gas priming microwave energy source.

Claim 3

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said coupling between said resonator means and said source of priming microwave energy includes bidirectional coupling means conveying energy from said source of priming microwave energy to said resonator means and returning energy from said resonator means to an energy feedback node in said priming energy source for both energizing said resonator coupled capillary tube gas and determining the microwave operating frequency of said priming microwave energy source; whereby the frequency of said priming microwave energy is coincident with the natural frequency of said resonator and priming energy ionization of said capillary tube gas is minimally subjected to diverging resonator and priming energy frequency drift.

Claim 4

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the coupling between said transmission means and said gas-filled capillary tube means and the coupling between said resonator means and said gas-filled capillary tube means are at separated locations along said capillary tube means.

Claim 5

The apparatus of claim 3 further including a signal isolating ground plane member located adjacent said transmission means and said resonator means.

Claim 6

The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said planar microwave transmission means includes regions of high transmitted signal electric field intensity and regions of lower electric field intensity and wherein said gas-filled capillary tube means is located in a region of high transmitted signal field intensity.

Claim 7

Microwave apparatus comprising: a microwave resonator; a source of microwave electrical energy excitationally coupled with said resonator and including a microwave oscillator circuit having an input portion receiving feedback energy from said resonator; microwave signal transmission means for conveying a microwave signal; gas tube limiter means coupled with said microwave signal transmission means for modifying the electrical characteristics thereof in response to transmitted signal magnitude, said limiter means being also coupled with said microwave resonator and receiving gas priming energy therefrom.

Claim 8

Microwave apparatus comprising: a microwave resonator; a source of microwave electrical energy excitationally coupled with said resonator and including a microwave oscillator circuit having an input portion receiving feedback energy from said resonator; microwave signal transmission means for conveying a microwave signal; gas tube limiter means coupled with said microwave signal transmission means for modifying the electrical characteristics thereof in response to transmitted signal magnitude, said limiter means being also coupled with said microwave resonator and receiving gas priming energy therefrom.

Claim 9

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said gas tube limiter contains at least one gas component taken from the group consisting of oxygen, nitrogen, argon, krypton, chlorine, flourine and bromine.

Claim 10

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said microwave resonator includes a microwave cavity structure.

Claim 11

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said resonator includes a solid state dielectric material.

Claim 12

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said capillary tube is comprised of quartz.

Claim 13

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said microwave signal transmission means is a portion of an integrated circuit.

Claim 14

The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said signal transmission means includes a planar transmission line.

Claim 17

The method of claim 13 wherein the threshold device is a gas-filled limiter and wherein said priming step includes coupling a sufficient quantity of energy into said gas to maintain a stand-by ionized region therein at a location separated from the coupling of the limiter with said signal transmission line.