Speaker
Description
The Argentine Neutron Beam Laboratory (LAHN) represents a landmark initiative designed to coordinate a world-class national facility for advanced neutron scattering techniques. As the first large-scale experimental neutron facility in Latin America, LAHN bridges the regional gap in "Big Science" infrastructure. This summary outlines the genesis of the project, its current implementation milestones, and the strategic roadmaps designed to overcome logistical, financial, and human resource challenges.
Historically, world-class neutron scattering facilities—which require high-flux nuclear research reactors or large particle accelerators—have been heavily concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere. This technological disparity restricted Latin American researchers to short-term, competitive experiments abroad.
To address this, the project was conceptualized to leverage the construction of the RA-10 Multipurpose Argentine Reactor. Initiated with strategic planning in 2016, early efforts focused on assessing regional demand. A pivotal 2017 workshop co-organized by CNEA and MinCyT established the "Scientific Cases" framework, documenting specific research needs across 28 participating institutions, 63 research lines, and multiple countries in the region. These metrics directly dictated the initial instrumentation suite design.
LAHN is currently transitioning from a conceptual framework into a physical reality at the Ezeiza Atomic Center.
Reactor Infrastructure: The RA-10 reactor, which provides the high-flux neutron source, has surpassed 95% construction completion. Its flux capacity will be fully competitive with leading international facilities like MLZ (Germany), and ACNS (Australia).
Core Team: More than 60 professionals and researchers within CNEA are actively collaborating on the design, development, and management of the facility.
International Cooperation: Strong partnerships have led to the acquisition of valuable instrumentation. Notably, the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB) has donated a multipurpose SANS instrument and a polarized neutron reflectometer. Additionally, the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) in Switzerland has donated a dedicated SANS instrument for soft matter studies.
Community Engagement: The center has established a network of over 1,000 connected researchers, trained more than 300 individuals through annual ETNA schools, and hosted five biennial Argentine Neutron Techniques Congresses.
To achieve full operational capability as a 24/7 open-access National Laboratory, LAHN must systematically address some critical challenges:
Formal cross-institutional agreements within the Argentine Scientific-Technological System must be established. This ensures collective responsibility for the operation, maintenance, and open-access beamtime allocation. While the facility can accommodate approximately 14 instruments, the immediate hurdle is securing sustained funding to relocate, install, and optimize the donated instruments, alongside funding the native CNEA developments (Neutron Imaging and Engineering Diffractometer, etc).
The current workforce of ~50 personnel must scale up to a permanent staff of 80 professional. Recruiting and retaining specialized "Instrument Scientists" who lead the technical and scientific evolution of each beamline remains vital.