Simulations for MeV Energy Gain in Multi-Micron Vacuum Channel Dielectric Structures Driven by a CO₂ Laser

Dielectric Laser Accelerators (DLAs) have been demonstrated as a novel scheme for producing high acceleration gradients (~1 GV/m) within the damage threshold of the dielectric. The compactness of the DLAs and the low emittance of the output electron beam make it an attractive candidate for future endoscopic devices to be used in tumor irradiation. However, due to the small accelerating distances(sub-mm), the total energy gain is limited to sub-MeV which remains an obstacle for its realistic applications. Also, these DLAs operate under solid-state lasers with wavelengths near IR (800 nm to 2 um), where required sub-micron vacuum channel at such wavelengths imposes major aperture restrictions for the amount of charge to be accelerated. Here, we present numerical simulation results for a dielectric structure excited by a CO₂ laser with a wavelength of 10.6 um. Upon injecting a 50 MeV electron bunch through a 5.3 um diameter of vacuum channel width, our simulation suggests an energy gain beyond 1 MeV. These results are the initial steps for the realization of an mm-scale DLA capable of producing MeV energy electron beams.