Metamaterial Mediated Inverse Cherenkov Acceleration

In this paper we examine the effect of introducing an Electromagnetic metamaterial into a Travelling Wave structure to mediate inverse Cherenkov acceleration. Electromagnetic metamaterials are artificial materials that consist of macroscopic structures that yield an effective permittivity and permeability less than zero. The properties of metamaterials are highly frequency dependent and give rise to very novel dispersion relationships. We show that the introduction of a specifically designed metamaterial into the interaction region gives rise to a novel dispersion curve yielding a unique wave-particle interaction. We demonstrate that this novel wave-particle interaction gives rise energy exchange from wave to beam over an extended interaction regime. We also discuss the benefits and issues that arise from having a metamaterial in a high vacuum high power environment with a specific focus on the issue of loss in metamaterial structures.