Transport of a high-intensity electron beam in neutral gases

An experimental investigation was made of the interaction between a pulsed high-current relativistic electron beam (having an energy of ~ 1 MeV, a current of ~ 10 kA, and a pulse duration of ~ 60 nsec) with neutral gases in the pressure range 1–750 Torr. It was found that in gas mixtures used in chemical lasers the proportion of the beam energy deposited in a gas at a pressure of 750 Torr in an interaction chamber 100-cm long may reach 40% (100 J). The experimental results were in good agreement with the single-particle theory of interaction between fast relativistic electrons and a gas.