Eesti teaduse infrastruktuuride teekaart - ETIS

MATERJALITEADUSED | MATERIALS SCIENCE 47ESS – EUROPEAN SPALLATION SOURCEThe ESS will be built in the neigbourhood of the MAX-IV synchrotron in Lund, SouthernSweden. It will form a large scale facility, where hundreds of scientists and engineerswill work and many more top scientists over the world are involved. Estonian participationin the ESS project will ensure free access of our scientist to this centre.NEW INFRASTRUCTUREThe ESS will be the most powerfulneutron source for research, whereinitially 20 beamlines will be built and itis designed to be the most cost effectivefacility in the worlds. Neutrons will beproduced in the collision of acceleratedprotons of GeV energies withmetal atoms in liquid phase (e.g. Hg,Pb). The obtained neutron beams arewell collimated and their time structureis highly controllable. Such a neutronbeam will open unique possibilites ofin-situ and in vivo measurements in realtime and space, including snapshots ofprocesses occurring at nanoscale. Thestructure, dynamics and functionality ofinorganic, organic and biomaterials willbe investigated.PARTNERSHIPSThe ESS is a source of themal neutronswith millielectronvolt energiesfor research purposes. Thermal neutronsin the course of scattering onnuclei of studied matter provide valuablestructural information. Irradiationof matter with photons, which possessthe same effective wavelength asthermal neutrons will practicallydestruct every organic or biomolecule.When analogous neutrons interactwith matter the structure will be preservedwithout any damages. Moreover,significant penetration depth ofneutrons will carry information on theposition of nuclei in deep buried layersof matter. In many cases neutrons areonly a method to investigate the structureof complicated molecular systems(like biomolecules and soft matter).EXISTINGINFRASTRUCTUREIn 2009 two large accelerator-basedneutron sources are in operation: SNSin Oak Ridge (USA) and J-PARK inTokai (Japan). After years of discussionsEuropean neutron source willbe built in Lund. 13 states, includingEstonia, have joined this agreement upto 2010.Interdisciplinary cooperation of Estonianscientist of biology, chemistry, materialsscience, physics, biotechnology, etc. willformulate a scientific and investmentprogram. Researchers of the NationalInstitute of Chemical and BiologicalPhysics, from the Faculty of Scienceand Technology at the University ofTartu and Tallinn University of Technologywill be involved together withother academic and industrial researchgroups, who can benefit from the usageof thermal neutrons in their studies.www.esss.se