Patent ID: 7239095

Claim:
An energy switch assembly for a standing wave linear particle beam accelerator having a plurality of accelerating cavities and a plurality of side cavities, each side cavity electromagnetically coupling adjacent ones of the accelerating cavities, the energy switch assembly comprising: a first plunger assembly having a first plunger positionable within a first side cavity; and a second plunger assembly having a second plunger positionable within a second side cavity, wherein the first plunger and the second plunger move between a first position where the first plunger is retracted from the first side cavity and the second plunger is retracted from the second side cavity and a second position where the first plunger extends into the first side cavity so that the first plunger touches an internal surface of the first side cavity opposite the first plunger assembly and the second plunger extends into the second side cavity so that the second plunger is adjacent to, but not touching, an internal surface of the second side cavity opposite the second plunger assembly for varying the output of the linear particle beam accelerator.