Multipactor Coating for Sapphire RF Windows Using Remote Plasma-Assisted Deposition

Traditional application of multipactor coatings applied with sputtering techniques to high-power RF windows typically performs well when applied to sintered powder ceramics. Unfortunately, sputtered coatings do not adhere well to crystal materials, such as sapphire. This publication describes a plasma-assisted process that molecularly bonds the multipactor coating to the base window material. The performance was verified by measuring secondary electron emission yield and operating the window at high power. The coating process and performance are presented.