Thermal Analysis of High-Average Power Helix Traveling-Wave Tube

The thermal simulation using ANSYS was carried out for estimating the maximum temperature and the temperature distribution in a high-average power broadband helix traveling-wave tube (TWT). The simulation was first carried out independently for the subassemblies such as the slow-wave structure, the output coupler, and the depressed collector; and the combined effect on the overall temperature inside the TWT was estimated subsequently. The simulation was carried out using several options of thermal interface resistances such as 100% contact and 50% contact, apart from considering various structural configurations, and an optimal thermal management solution was evolved for the device under consideration.