Application of Map-Based Multipactor Theory to Alternate Periodic Radio Frequency Waveforms

Multipactor is an electron discharge driven by secondary electron emission (SEE) that plagues microwave components, accelerator structures, and space-borne systems operating in vacuum conditions. Recently, a novel map-based theoretical approach for multipactor based on nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory has been introduced and applied to systems driven by a standard radio frequency (RF) sinusoidal electric field. This theory, however, is universal in that it is applicable to any periodic RF waveform. To demonstrate this, this article applies the map-based theory to periodic rectangular and triangular RF waveforms in a parallel-plate geometry. Bifurcation diagrams are constructed that concisely summarize the underlying multipactor dynamics for both waveforms. These theoretical predictions are then quantitatively verified with the particle-in-cell simulations.