Design and Development of a Bounded-Wave High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse Simulator Incorporating Self-Steepening Marx Generator and Antenna Integrated Pulse-Shaping Switch

The threat of high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) to electronic information equipment has received widespread attention. Specific to the performance evaluation testing requirements of subsystem-level equipment against the HEMP threat, a miniaturized vertical polarized bounded-wave simulator is designed and developed in this article. Based on the direct drive method wherein a fast compact Marx generator (CMG) discharges to a guided-wave antenna with a codesigned pulse-shaping switch, the developed simulator is capable of generating a standard HEMP radiation environment in a limited test volume and guaranteeing the consistency of peak field intensity with a fixed operation voltage. Integration of a self-steepening structure into the conventional CMG effectively improves the output pulse front edge by modulating the stray capacitance value. Consequently, the primary pulse output with an amplitude exceeding 220 kV and a rising time of less than 4.7 ns can be realized, significantly expanding the dynamic working range of the pulse-shaping switch. Additionally, the integrated design of the pulse-shaping switch and the radiation antenna ensures structure continuity, facilitating the distortionless transmission of the feeding voltage pulse. This modification enables the realization of the rising time of the radiation electric field extending from the standard 2.5 ± 0.5 ns to the subnanosecond range. The simulator can generate an electromagnetic environment with a maximum electric field intensity surpassing 100 kV/m and a field uniformity of 2.8 dB. This article provides a fresh perspective on the design of a compact and reliable bounded-wave HEMP simulator.