ESS ESS

ESS European Spallation Source

Coordinator: Santo Gammino (INFN-LNS)
Priority area: Accelerator Design Update
funding requested: 2,25 MEuro for the Accelerator Design Update

Short description
The ESS project (http://europeanspallationsource.se/), which will be a material analysis laboratory based on the high-flux neutron spectroscopy, it is an extremely important instrument to keep Europe at the forefront in research and development of innovative materials enhancing the ability of innovation for manufacturing, pharmaceutical and energy industries. This objective is considered of worldwide strategic interest and similar interests have promoted the creation of the SNS facility in USA and JPARC in Japan. For these reasons ESS was assessed of strategic interest and it was recommended for a rapid implementation by ESFRI. The European Commission has funded the ESS Preparatory Phase with 5 MÄ. In 2011 the two-year Pre-Construction phase was already started, funded by Sweden and Denmark with 60 MÄ; 17 EU countries have been involved and signed a specific MoU, including Italy. The starting of the construction phase, which total cost will be 1.5 Billion Ä, is expected for 2013 and will last about 10 years. The laboratory will be built in Lund (Sweden) and it is expected to be fully operative to the users starting from the 2025. The expected operational time should cover the following 40 years. The specific interest of Italy at the scientific level, in addition to the overall competitiveness of the industrial system, is the development of useful knowledge to create opportunities for the industry of energy, of scientific instrumentations and of quality control. Starting from 2009 INFN has had an operational role in the Accelerator Design Update (ADU) phase, with specific contributions to different non-superconducting accelerator sections: Proton Source, Radio Frequency Quadrupole and Drift Tube Linac. In the construction phase INFN contributions will be extended to the Superconducting Cavity Section of the high energy Accelerator. In particular LNS, LNL and LASA hold the know-how sector that is internationally recognized. The integration of INFN skills in the construction of the accelerator with those of CNR and Synchrotron Trieste, expressed since the Preparatory Phase of 2008, in the field of Instrumentation, allow to configure the Italian contribution to ESS as a coordinated action of the interested Research Institutions.