Multi-purpose center
ELI Beamlines’ infrastructure is the most multifunctional of all existing and projected laser facilities. It has been designed not only to serve researchers who specialize in laser science, but it will also accommodate researchers from other fields such as material sciences and engineering, medicine, biology, chemistry, and astrophysics. With this variety in its research activities, it is expected to deliver significant benefits to society in the medium and long term.
Groundbreaking discoveries
The exceptional opportunities offered by the facility, especially in very high resolution imaging and in particle acceleration, might well lead to breakthroughs in the field of nanotechnologies, to the development of new drugs, and to major improvements in the treatment of cancer tumors, especially proton therapy. Industrial applications are also expected in areas such as aeronautics and the automotive industry. Numerous industrial companies have already expressed their interest in the project.
Lasers for All
The facility was opened for user experiments in 2018. In line with the recommendations of the European Union and the European Strategic Forum on Research Infrastructures, the ELI Beamlines facility enforces an open access policy for researchers, irrespective of their countries or institutions of origin. The same access policy prevail in all three facilities of the ELI-ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium). These facilities, which are widely open to the international user community, allocates access time on the basis of open competition and evaluation of the research proposals by international peer review. This already guarantee the scientific excellence of the facility. Furthermore, significant access is being given to students, technology co-developers, and contractual users from within the industry.
