Tech Project
Description of the challenges faced by the Tech Project
The challenge of the project is to build up a world level facility for the production of exotic beams for Nuclear Physics experiments but even able to face the frontiers of nuclear medicine. This “second generation” ISOL facility can produce high intensity radioactive beams through the fission of Uranium. Beams like 132Sn at 10 MeV/n and 10**9 ions/s will be provided to users to perform nuclear physics experiments in at the frontiers of our knowledge. The aim is to study nuclei at the drip lines, the regions at the limit of existence of nuclei. Of special interest are the nuclei with an excess of neutrons, which may give important information on the behavior of nuclear matter present in neutron stars: nuclear matter equation of state, compressibility and symmetry terms can be addressed studying neutron rich nuclei produced through the interaction of exotic beams produced at SPES with selected targets. Challenging science results can be obtained with SPES not only in terms of knowledge about nuclear matter (with particular emphasis on star evolution, heavy element formation and neutron capture processes) but also in connection with application in nuclear medicine. The challenge is to improve our knowledge of physics world from stars to human health. New radioisotopes useful for medicine can, in fact, be produced by the high power SPES cyclotron, delivering beam up to 70 MeV and up to 500 microA of protons, and unprecedented high purity isotopes can be selected by the same system used to produce the ion beam for nuclear physics research and applied in medicine studies. The above results can be reached improving the state of the art technologies in high power target systems, target materials, ion beam production, selection and handling. Up to date custom designs are being developed and challenges in materials technologies, mainly thermal and mechanical properties, are foreseen.
Brief description of technology
The artist can choose to know and study any part of the SPES project: - accelerators: the superconductive linear accelerator (ALPI) and cyclotron (SPES): the cyclotron is a 70 MeV proton driver which can deliver high intensity proton beams. The C70 beams are sent to new technologically developed high power targets, necessary to produce either exotic beams for basic nuclear physics or radio-isotopes for nuclear medicine. The ALPI SC is a lineac accelerator able to re-accelerate both stable and exotic beams. - the SPES production Target-Ion Source: a system dedicated to the production and exctraction of exotic ions - the main experimental set-up and areas: we have magnetic spectrometers, particle large angle spectrometers and gamma arrays - the new building: huge infrastructures for experiments and production of radioisotopes More details at SPES web site: https://web.infn.it/spes/ http://www.lnl.infn.it/~spes_target/ENG/index.php
What the project is looking to gain from the collaboration and what kind of artist would be suitable
Any kind of artistic product available for public engagement. We expect an exchange between Art & Science to spread out culture to public, in order to show that knowledge is a good future of the world. Any artist is welcome: it is important the artist may reproduce through its artistic product one or more aspects of the scientific and technological world which is visible in our Laboratory. Scientific life, common efforts to join a common goal, state of the art technologies, links and applications dedicated to upgrade normal life and health are among the main arguments which can be found and deepened during the artist stay.
Resources available to the artist
The artist will have availability of: office facility, internet connection, laboratory, staff allocated to the project: 3 tutors/referents + people that the artist may encounter during his stay, which may help him in understanding the Lab. The artist can visit the whole Legnaro Laboratory to have an insight of the research center activity. He can participates to the scientific and technological activities, cohadiuvated by researcher and engineers, to understand what is going on in the preparation of the SPES infrastructure and installation. He will be allowed to take part to the data acquisition and operation of the accelerators during experiments. The Laboratory will offer lunch in the canteen and a room in the guest house. He will be allowed to share the Laboratory life with reserchers, engineers and technicians.