Due to the differentiating characteristics of its design and construction and to its use and/or applications, ESS is considered to be a unique installation of its type. The ESS provides services for the international scientific and technological community and is considered to be an essential tool for the development of competitive, quality scientific and technological research

This scientific infrastructure produces neutrons that penetrate matter providing precise information about its atomic structure. Neutron spallation is a technique used by researchers in a range of different scientific disciplines such as molecular biology, the physics of materials and medicine. The scientific applications deriving from experimentation with neutrons are numerous, as are its industrial applications in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, automotive, aeronautics and electronics, among others.

Operation

Hydrogen ions are lead from the source through a linear accelerator towards a heavy material core, the spallation target, which emits neutrons on impact. The emitted neutrons are guided towards different instrument stations where experiments on the study of the atomic structure of the matter will be carried out.

Staff

The ESS-Bilbao project expects to maximise the use of the installation so that it will have a staff of 600 people at full strength and be used by a further 4000 on an annual basis.