High-Power RF Amplifiers for Particle Accelerators
Celestia TTI works alongside the world’s leading research facilities and scientific programmes, delivering high-power Solid State Power Amplifiers (SSPAs) and custom RF solutions engineered for the unique demands of particle accelerator systems. Our team brings years of hands-on experience in particle accelerator projects, with the capability to manage complex programmes from conceptual design through to final production and commissioning.
GaN-based SSPA technology offers particle physics laboratories a modern, reliable alternative to legacy klystron and IOT amplifiers, delivering modular power architectures that reduce downtime, simplify maintenance and provide true graceful degradation — essential attributes for accelerator facilities that operate around the clock on tightly scheduled beam-time programmes.
Why Solid State Technology for Accelerators?
Modular Architecture
Our SSPAs use phase-combined amplifier modules that allow the system to continue operating even if individual modules require service. This graceful degradation eliminates the single point of failure inherent in vacuum tube amplifiers, maximising beam availability for experimental programmes.
High Efficiency
GaN transistor technology delivers power-added efficiency levels up to 60%, significantly reducing the electricity consumption and cooling requirements that dominate the operating costs of high-power RF systems in large accelerator facilities.
Flexible Operating Modes
Celestia TTI SSPAs support both continuous wave (CW) and pulsed operating modes, with configurable duty cycles and pulse parameters that can be adapted to different accelerator structures — from linear accelerators (linacs) and synchrotrons to cyclotrons and storage rings.
Compact and Reliable
Advanced packaging and cooling techniques — including water and air cooling options — enable high power density in compact form factors. Combined with GaN’s inherently long operational lifetime and predictable MTBF characteristics, our amplifiers deliver the reliability that 24/7 accelerator operations require.
Product Solutions for Particle Physics
S-band SSPAs
Our S-band power amplifiers address the 2–4 GHz range widely used in electron linacs and medical accelerators, providing modular, scalable power solutions that can be configured for specific cavity impedance and bandwidth requirements.
UHF SSPAs
The UHF-band SSPAs serve proton synchrotrons and heavy-ion accelerators operating in the hundreds-of-MHz range, where high peak power and precise amplitude and phase control are critical for beam acceleration and manipulation.
Custom RF Solutions
Many accelerator applications require bespoke RF systems tailored to specific cavity designs, frequency plans and power levels. Celestia TTI’s engineering services team works directly with accelerator physicists and RF engineers to develop custom amplifier solutions that meet exact programme specifications.
Accelerator Applications
Synchrotron Light Sources: High-power RF systems for electron storage rings that generate synchrotron radiation for materials science, structural biology and industrial applications, where amplitude stability directly impacts photon beam quality.
Hadron Therapy: Compact, reliable SSPA systems for medical particle accelerators used in proton and carbon ion cancer therapy, where equipment uptime directly impacts patient treatment schedules.
Research Linacs: Modular power amplifier solutions for linear accelerators in nuclear and particle physics research, supporting both room-temperature and superconducting cavity architectures.
Isotope Production: Robust RF power sources for cyclotrons used in medical isotope production, where continuous operation and minimal unplanned downtime are essential to supply chains.
From Concept to Production
Celestia TTI supports particle accelerator projects through every phase: conceptual RF system design, prototype development, qualification testing (including in-house anechoic chamber and thermal characterisation), series production with industrial quality control, and on-site installation support. Our ISO 9001:2015 certified processes ensure traceability and repeatability across production runs — critical when equipping accelerator facilities with dozens or hundreds of identical amplifier units.
Planning an accelerator RF system upgrade or new installation? Contact our scientific RF team to discuss your power, frequency and operating mode requirements.