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October 09 Issue - Employee Monthly Magazine Los Alamos Neutron Science Center An aerial view of the LANSCE facility looking East. The high-intensity linear proton accelerator (LINAC) stretches for one-half mile eastward and is still one of the most intense sources of protons in the world. Photo by Robb Kramer Conceived by Louis Rosen in the 1960s, the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) was formally dedicated in 1972 and continues to serve the nation as a premier national research facility for basic and applied science. Originally the Los Alamos Meson Physics Facility, LANSCE attracts some of the world’s best scientific talent, as well as trains students to become the next generation of top engineers and scientists, said LANSCE Director Kurt Schoenberg. The heart of LANSCE is the high-intensity linear proton accelerator (LINAC) that stretches for one-half mile eastward. It produces beams of protons with energies of up to 800 million electron volts. After almost four decades, the LINAC is still one of the most intense sources of protons in the world. These protons are accelerated to a blistering 84 percent the speed of light before being smashed into a heavy metal target containing neutron-rich atoms. The protons blast these atoms apart releasing torrents of neutrons. Neutrons, which have no net electric charge and can pass through materials without the side effects of charged particles, are ideal for studying nuclear and materials physics. As Rosen said, “Whether nuclear energy is used for bombs, for generating electricity, or for any number of other purposes, the basic ingredient in the production of nuclear energy is neutrons. So one really needs . . . to maintain expertise and growing knowledge in neutron nuclear science and neutron technology.” Using protons and neutrons, LANSCE provides the National Nuclear Security Administration with an efficient, costeffective, and timely means to meet its Stockpile Stewardship mission. The facility, where classified research on stockpile materials and components takes place, supports all NNSA laboratories and the United Kingdom’s Atomic Weapons Establishment, addresses the growing concern of nuclear proliferation, and contributes to developing tools for accurate nuclear forensics, Schoenberg said. LANSCE also supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative by developing a new class of safer, cleaner, and more proliferation-resistant fuels—fuels the nation needs to provide energy security and independence, protect the environment, and impede nuclear terrorism. Schoenberg noted that LANSCE is critical to the National Isotope Program. “It is one of two accelerator-based isotope production facilities in the United States providing isotopes that are not commercially available,” he said. “LANSCE’s isotopes are used in millions of medical procedures each year and reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign isotope sources.” LANSCE remains the only U.S. source for producing ultacold neutrons that enable revolutionary research on cold and ultracold neutrons, neutrinos, and nuclear astrophysics, thus keeping the United States in the forefront of fundamental nuclear physics. LANSCE also is a national user facility essential to the nuclear, materials, and biological sciences. For example, LANSCE research has revealed new discoveries about the mechanisms of cholera transmission that could lead to new disease prevention and treatment. And it seems LANSCE will get a facelift as it continues to play a major role in scientific research. On September 28, LANSCE received Critical Decision-1 approval from the NNSA for the LANSCE Refurbishment Project, which “will refurbish, repair, replace, and modernize equipment and major components of the LINAC to meet Defense Programs operating requirements for the next two decades." — Tatjana K. Rosev Other Headlines
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