Groundbreaking decision for PETRA IV
The German Federal Government's Budget Committee meeting on 16 November decided to start construction of the PETRA IV 3D X-ray microscope at DESY - and, allocated 40 million euros in start-up funding in 2024 to DESY for this future-oriented project.
In addition to conceptualising and designing the future PETRA IV as the world's most brilliant 3D x-ray microscope, DESY's has shaped a future-oriented vision for scientific and societal use of the future PETRA IV as a 3D X-ray microscope to advance science and solve societal challenges.
It was therefore superb news for DESY, and the national and international user communities for PETRA III, that the German Federal Government will fund the upgrade of the PETRA synchrotron to its fourth generation.
"This is a truly great signal from the German government in these difficult times," explains Helmut Dosch, Chairman of the DESY Board of Directors. "The PETRA IV high-tech research facility is seen as a driver of innovation." Arik Willner, Chief Technology Officer at DESY: "What a strong signal for Germany as a center of innovation. With the federal funding that has now been approved and the ten percent co-financing from Hamburg, we will begin to build the ultimate nano data factory for science, industry, start-ups and clinics. This will have an enormous signal effect in sectors such as energy generation, semiconductors, medical technology, quantum systems and data-driven technologies. We are ready to go!"
The funds can be used for preparatory construction measures for the PETRA IV X-ray microscope. This includes, in particular, the design and prototype of an innovative, energy-saving accelerator technology and the transformation of the business mode.
DESY hopes that Sweden will continue its cooperative agreement also into the PETRA IV era - scheduling a Swedish high energy beamline to be amongst the first trench of beamlines to open for beam times when PETRA IV first goes live.
The Center for X-rays in Swedish Materials Science submitted the science case for a Swedish Materials Science beamline, and Swedish privileged access to other PETRA IV beamlines, on the 7 November to the Swedish Research Council's inventory call. Since the Swedish beamline is a relatively new beamline, with state-of-the-art SAXS/WAXS capabilities, there is only a relatively minor investment needed to ensure it both SAXS/WAXS and nano scale imaging can be operational at PETRA IV.