Broschüre EMFL English

4 The forces acting within the EMFL magnets are incredibly powerful. In a strong magnetic field of about 100 teslas, the magnetic force inside the conductor would generate a pressure that equals 40,000 times the air pressure at sea level. However, one should always bear in mind that these magnets are research tools and that their utility doesn’t depend exclusively on the field strength. Other factors such as pulse duration and bore size are also important for realizing state-of-the-art high-field measurements. Transportable pulsed magnets and generators allowing fields of up to 40 teslas to be combined with large neutron, X-ray, or laser sources have been developed at the EMFL labs. Neutron and synchrotron ex- periments in pulsed fields allow researchers to reveal the microscopic properties of matter; they are conducted jointly between the EMFL and a number of large facilities that are leaders in their field, such as the Institut Laue-Langevin and the European Synchrotron Radiation Source in Grenoble, France, both of them European research facilities. Magnetic fields can help defeat cancer. Not only are they used to trace tumours with the help of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), EMFL researchers also want to use them to come up with a compact and inexpensive alternative to present-day cancer therapies – such as proton beam therapy using laser-particle acceleration. Pulsed magnets, developed and built in the EMFL labs, could be used to focus the rays on the tumour with high precision so that the energy can be discharged in exactly the right spot. However, until these new developments find their way into hospitals and to patients, a lot more research has to be done. Along with their external partners, EMFL researchers are investiga- ting possibilities for forming, joining, and welding metals, which could otherwise not be welded. How is this supposed to work? By using very short and intense magnetic-field pulses, large compressive forces may act on materials. For that reason, work pieces can be deformed at enormous speeds – even to the point where they get joint or welded together although not heated. Pulsed electromagnetic field forming, joining, and welding is an energy-efficient cutting-edge technology with many extra benefits for economy and environment. Among many other things, the EMFL scientists … tame extremely strong forces fight cancer form metal create magnets for other European or national large research facilities

Broschüre EMFL English

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