European Coordination for Accelerator Research and Development

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EuCARD (European Coordination for Accelerator Research & Development) is a project co-financed by the European Commission in the 7th EU Framework Program for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration ( FP7 ). 37 European partners from research, education and industry take part in EuCARD. EuCARD is coordinated by CERN in Geneva.

Goal setting

It is the declared aim of EuCARD to make a significant contribution to the creation of a European Research Area in the field of accelerator physics by de facto seeking to establish a decentralized European accelerator laboratory. The priority for EuCARD is to modernize, expand and improve existing European research infrastructures, to promote and consolidate cooperation between its partners from research, education and industry and to work out and promote synergies.

concept

To put it simply, particle accelerators function like microscopes with a very high magnification - so powerful that they can provide insight into the structure of the fundamental components of nature (matter, forces). With the most powerful of these “microscopes”, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, particle physics is now on the threshold of exciting new discoveries, complementary to theories and results from cosmology . The LHC is able to simulate conditions like shortly after the Big Bang in the laboratory and thus questions of particle physics about the existence of dark matter in the universe, the existence of less antimatter than matter and the attainment of the mass of the elementary particles.

In addition to particle physics, particle accelerators are important for imaging processes in medicine, cancer therapy , biology, materials science and industry. With such an abundance of scientifically and technically demanding applications and thus the recognized importance of accelerator physics , the European strategy group for particle physics agreed on common priorities for research and development of particle accelerators in 2006. These priorities include: high-field magnets, superconductors and linear accelerators . In the seamless continuation of the FP6 project CARE (Coordinated Accelerator Research in Europe), EuCARD brings together the specialist knowledge, interest and know-how of European partners and actively promotes their cooperation, primarily to modernize, expand and increase existing research infrastructures improve.

Research and Development

In accelerator physics, it is essentially about directing electrically charged particles in a targeted manner onto orbits, accelerating them and focusing them. In order to achieve the ever higher particle energies and particle densities required by modern particle accelerators, one encounters a whole series of interesting challenges - currently the performance limits of accelerators are determined by the limits of the technologies used. Expanding these limits of highly specialized cutting-edge technologies requires globally coordinated, targeted research and development in the field of accelerator physics.

In order to direct and focus high-energy charged particles, magnets with extremely high fields are required , as can only be achieved with superconductors . Currently used superconductors are limited to flux densities of about 10 Tesla (T). EuCARD will now examine the suitability of another superconducting material for its applicability in high field magnets: niobium tin (Nb 3 Sn), with which an increase of the field to 13 to 15 T would be possible. With the use of additional inserts of high-temperature superconductors , fields of up to 20 T appear to be achievable. However, these superconductors are extremely brittle, which is why their use in accelerator magnets poses an extreme challenge to the technology.

With ever higher intensities, energies and powers of the particle beams, the collimators required to protect the accelerator and to control the beam quality are becoming more and more important and difficult. Within the framework of EuCARD, novel materials for use in more robust and efficient collimators are examined and verified through the design, construction and testing of prototypes.

It is generally accepted that accelerators for next-generation particle physics experiments will be linear accelerators for leptons , as they in principle reduce the energy loss that high-energy particles experience when they fly in a curved path ( synchrotron radiation ). In order to keep such a linear accelerator short, the acceleration must be as high as possible; In order to achieve the required particle density, the beams must be strongly focused and extremely precisely aligned and stabilized. Both the acceleration with the highest gradients and the extreme requirements for alignment and stabilization are studied and improved in EuCARD, whether the acceleration is based on superconducting ( International Linear Collider , ILC) or normally conducting (Compact Linear Collider, CLIC) accelerator structures. EuCARD consciously creates and promotes synergies and operates a global network of experts.

EuCARD also looks into the future of accelerator physics by examining and assessing a variety of novel concepts, such as acceleration by plasma waves, the concept of synchrotrons with a constant magnetic field (FFAG using the example of EMMA (accelerator)), and the so-called crab -crossing to increase the luminosity.

Networks and transnational access to research institutions

Particle accelerators are large and complicated instruments; their high complexity can only be mastered by bringing together the know-how and ideas of many experts. As a platform for scientific collaboration and communication, EuCARD provides networks within which physicists and engineers can present their methodology, exchange their experience, present their results, put new ideas up for discussion and organize their collaboration. The EuCARD networks are themed around facilities for neutrino physics, the performance limits of accelerators and high-frequency technology. Another network serves specifically to prepare and disseminate the EuCARD research results to the public.

In the same spirit of promoting cooperation and the exchange of ideas, two new research facilities have been opened to scientists outside the accelerator field within the framework of EuCARD: MICE, (International Muon Ionization Cooling Experiment), a facility for generating monoenergetic muons , and HighRadMat, a station for testing from Materials and instruments in a highly radiation-exposed environment.

partner

Budget and duration

The total budget is € 31 million, € 10 million of which is financed by EU funds. The term lasts from April 1, 2009 to March 30, 2013.

Related projects

A whole series of different projects in the field of accelerator physics, some of which are co-financed with EU funds, are closely related to EuCARD.

See also

Web links