Go-ahead for new light source
Wednesday, 06 Jun 2007 12:27
The x-rays will enable scientist to make new measurements
A new facility to generate a light source created by x-rays has been launched in Germany.
The European X-Ray Laser Facility XFEL in northern Germany is an international project which will aim to benefit a range of natural sciences including geological research, physics and chemistry.
It will produce high intensity, ultra short x-rays with the properties of laser light.
Scientists using the x-ray pulses will be able to record how a chemical reaction progresses, how biomolecules move and how solids are formed.
Measurements are expected to be taken of new materials in the nanoworld. For example dimensions can be measured in billionths of a metre.
"The funding negotiations with the 12 interested countries are so far advanced that the construction of this new research facility, which is very much sought after by the international scientific community, can now begin," said German federal minister of education and research Dr Annette Schavan at the official launch ceremony:
"We can now assume that the commissioning of the first six of ten possible experimental stations will begin in 2013. And we aim to upgrade this initial version as soon as possible to the complete ten-station facility."
Other countries working on the project are Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, China, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK.