A Collaborating Centre agreement was signed between Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste and the IAEA last week.
Elettra is a multidisciplinary international research organisation that has worked with the IAEA for more than 15 years. It is specialized in generating synchrotron and free-electron laser light and applying it in a wide range of research fields including materials and life science. The new agreement will focus on the topic “Advanced Light Sources: Hardware and Development of Multi-Disciplinary Methodologies”, and will support countries in research, development and capacity building in the application of advanced and innovative radiation technologies.
“Elettra has a long history of collaboration with the IAEA and has already produced excellent results in fields ranging from air pollution to ovarian tumours,” said IAEA Deputy Director General Najat Mokhtar, Head of the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications. “This new agreement will benefit developing Member States through its broad focus on advanced light sources, including the free electron laser, FERMI.”
The recent partnership agreements between the IAEA and Elettra have focussed primarily on the XRF beamline, developing new hardware and analytical methods and have supported training and access to that facility. The new collaborating centre agreement has a much broader scope, including design of light sources, beamlines and optics. Elettra will provide assistance to developing countries planning to build or improve their own synchrotron facilities by training scientists and technologists in key areas.
Elettra is contributing to COVID-19 research, giving priority to experiments related to SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins and studies of possible drugs for viral infection treatment. Researchers from around the globe will be able to obtain remote access to Elettra/FERMI beamlines and perform experiments on a priority basis on the topic.
“With this agreement, Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste becomes a reference hub for accelerator and beamline technology to promote the impact of synchrotron-based fundamental, applied, and industrial research in IAEA Member States,” said Alfonso Franciosi, CEO of Elettra.
IAEA Collaborating Centres
Through the Collaborating Centres network, Member States can assist the IAEA by undertaking original research and development and training relating to nuclear science, technologies and their safe and secure applications. With the newly designated Collaborating Centre Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste in Italy, there are now 44 active Collaborating Centres worldwide, with ongoing discussions in several countries to establish new Centres.
