SESAME synchrotron circulates first beam

The Middle East’s first ‘light-source laboratory’ has circulated a beam for the first time.

SESAME (Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East) accelerates particles using electromagnetic radiation emitted by circulating electron beams to study a range of properties of matter.

Professor Khaled Toukan, SESAME Director, said: “This is a very proud moment for the entire SESAME community. SESAME is now opening for business.”

The synchrotron was established with the help of UNESCO before becoming a fully independent intergovernmental organisation in 2004. Members include Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, Turkey and The Palestinian Authority.

Experiments to be carried out will cover a wide range of disciplines such as medicine, biology, materials science, physics, chemistry, healthcare, agriculture and archaeology. SESAME’s main ring is a competitive third-generation light source built by SESAME with support from SESAME Members themselves, the European Commission, CERN and Italy.

Light beams at SESAME have to be accelerated to an operating energy of 2.5GeV, before being channelled along two day-one beam lines and optimised for research. This process is predicted to take around six months, leading to experiments beginning this summer.

Professor Chris Llewellyn-Smith, President of the SESAME Council, said: “This is a great day for SESAME. It’s a tribute to the skill and devotion of the scientists and decision-makers from the region who have worked tirelessly to make scientific collaboration between countries in the Middle East and neighbouring regions a reality.”

Scientists interested in submitting proposals for SESAME are invited to apply here.

Caption – SESAME’s light source will allow it to compete on equal footing with other synchrotrons worldwide.