New Developments in RF Power Sources*

The most challenging rf source requirements for highenergy accelerators presently being studied or designed come from the various electron-positron linear collider studies. All of these studies except TESLA (the superconducting entry in the field) have specified rf sources with much higher peak powers than any existing tubes at comparable high frequencies. While circular machines do not, in general, require high peak power, the very high luminosity electron-positron rings presently being designed as B factories require prodigious total average rf power. In this age of energy conservation, this puts a high priority on high efficiency for the rf sources. Both modulating anodes and depressed collectors are being investigated in the quest for high efficiency at varying output powers.