ELECTRON BEAM DIRECTED ENERGY DEVICE AND METHODS OF USING SAME
First Claim
1. A directed energy device comprising:
- an electron gun generating a plurality of electron beams, said plurality of electron beams disposed such that their beam axes are oriented in a pre-configured direction and separation to substantially overcome Coulomb repulsion at a point greater than 100 kilometers distant;
an electron accelerator positioned after the electron gun consisting of a plurality of sequential conductive shaped plates, each plate having at least one aperture per electron beam where the apertures are positioned at the respective beam'"'"'s axis, and the shape of the plates is essentially normal to the electron beams, the approximate spacing of the plates from adjacent plates is larger than the electrical breakdown limit; and
means for applying voltages to each conductive plate relative to other conductive plates.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus is disclosed for an electron beam directed energy device. The device consists of an electron gun with one or more electron beams. The device includes one or more accelerating plates with holes aligned for beam passage. The plates may be flat or preferably shaped to direct each electron beam to exit the electron gun at a predetermined orientation. In one preferred application, the device is located in outer space with individual beams that are directed to focus at a distant target to be used to impact and destroy missiles. The aimings of the separate beams are designed to overcome Coulomb repulsion. A method is also presented for directing the beams to a target considering the variable terrestrial magnetic field. In another preferred application, the electron beam is directed into the ground to produce a subsurface x-ray source to locate and/or destroy buried or otherwise hidden objects including explosive devices.
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Citations
61 Claims
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1. A directed energy device comprising:
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an electron gun generating a plurality of electron beams, said plurality of electron beams disposed such that their beam axes are oriented in a pre-configured direction and separation to substantially overcome Coulomb repulsion at a point greater than 100 kilometers distant; an electron accelerator positioned after the electron gun consisting of a plurality of sequential conductive shaped plates, each plate having at least one aperture per electron beam where the apertures are positioned at the respective beam'"'"'s axis, and the shape of the plates is essentially normal to the electron beams, the approximate spacing of the plates from adjacent plates is larger than the electrical breakdown limit; and means for applying voltages to each conductive plate relative to other conductive plates. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44)
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45. A directed energy device comprising:
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an electron gun having at least one beam of electrons, said at least one beam of electrons disposed such that at least one beam axis is oriented towards the surface of the earth and is located at a position of up to 200 meters above the surface of the earth; an electron accelerator, the electron accelerator operable to energize the electrons to between 10 MeV and 100 MeV; and wherein the directed energy device is operable to deposit energy subsurface. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 60, 61)
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58. A method for impacting ballistic missiles using a directed energy device, comprising the steps of:
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generating a plurality of electron beams, said plurality of electron beams disposed such that their beam axes are oriented in a pre-configured direction and separation to substantially overcome Coulomb repulsion at a point greater than 100 km distant; positioning an electron accelerator consisting of a plurality of sequential conductive shaped plates, each conductive shaped plate containing at least one aperture per electron beam, wherein the apertures are positioned at the respective beam'"'"'s axis, and the shape of the conductive shaped plates being essentially normal to the electron beams, the approximate spacing of the plates from adjacent plates is larger than the electrical breakdown limit; and applying voltages to each of the plurality of conductive shaped plates relative to the other of the plurality of conductive shaped plates.
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59. A method for detecting landmines using a directed energy device, comprising the steps of:
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providing an electron gun having at least one beam of electrons, said at least one beam of electrons disposed such that at least one beam axis is oriented towards the surface of the earth, the position of the electron gun being located at a position of up to 200 meters above the surface of the earth; providing an electron accelerator operable to energize the electrons to between 10 MeV and 100 MeV; and depositing the energy from the electrons at or below the surface of the earth.
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Specification