EM Structure Based and Vacuum Acceleration

The importance of particle acceleration may be judged from the number of applications which require some sort of accelerated beam. In addition to accelerator-based high energy physics research, non-academic applications include medical imaging and treatment, structural biology by x-ray diffraction, pulse radiography, cargo inspection, material processing, food and medical instrument sterilization, and so on. Many of these applications are already well served by existing technologies and will profit only marginally from developments in accelerator technology. Other applications are poorly served, such as structural biology, which is conducted at synchrotron radiation facilities, and medical treatment using proton accelerators, the machines for which are rare because they are complex and costly. Developments in very compact, high brightness and high gradient accelerators will change how accelerators are used for such applications, and potentially enable new ones. Physical and technical issues governing structure-based and vacuum acceleration of charged particles are reviewed, with emphasis on practical aspects