Accelerator Research and Development

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Modern accelerator facilities and systems represent a decisive technology of the future. They are indispensable when it comes to answering the major questions of our time. Today, accelerator systems are not only used in fundamental research, but also for innovations in materials research, bio and nano sciences, active ingredients research, and medical applications such as cancer therapy. The development of innovative accelerators is already today and also continues to be in the future a driving force for the exploration of new high tech fields. The Helmholtz Association's research centers in Hamburg, Darmstadt, Berlin, Jülich, Karlsruhe and Dresden have now joined forces to optimally use their synergies in this sector. In addition, an important task of the cooperation partners revolves around the education and training of young scientists.

Already today, the research facility ELBE – which is based on a superconducting electron linear accelerator operated by the HZDR – permits the acceleration of ultrashort electron bunches in a quality which allows scientists to conduct significantly more and better experiments within a shorter period of time than with comparable, normal conducting accelerators. Within the scope of the research topic “Accelerator Research and Development,” which is also a Helmholtz portfolio topic, methods for electron beam diagnostics on superconducting accelerators are to be optimized further so that it will be possible to operate light sources with improved properties. Other research topics include, for example, innovative particle sources, electron-photon interactions, and ultrashort particle bunches as well as innovative concepts for circular accelerators and accelerators with ultrahigh gradients.

Press Releases

• When electrons ride a wave
• Helmholtz-Gemein­schaft fördert ATHENA-Projekt mit 29,99 Mio. Euro
• Graphene enables clock rates in the terahertz range
• Extremely small and fast: laser ignites hot plasma
• Wie der Teilchenstrahl seine Struktur bekommt
• Fusion by strong lasers
• Laser-plasma accelerators without limits
• A closer look at superconductors
• Seven at one pulse
• Dynamic, yet inertial – and definitely futuristic
• Zeitreise zum Urknall
• Power boost thanks to gold lamellae: Research team develops new material system to con­vert and generate terahertz waves
• Digital fron­tier­ runners: CASUS involved in development of the world's largest supercompu­ter Fron­tier­
• Dresdner Team am JUWELS Booster: HZDR-Forscher­*innen testen Rechenkraft von Europas leis­tungs­fähigstem Supercompu­ter
• Dem Unbekannten auf der Spur: Ehemalige HZDR-Doktorandin erhält Preis der Amerikanischen Physikalischen Gesell­schaft
• Exploring the origin of the elements
• Spuren(elemente) kosmischer Explosionen
• Electrons riding a double wave: Research team presents a new type of particle accelerator
• Seeking a fas­ter pathway to synthetic data
• Fresh momentum for cutting-edge research from Germany
• An X-ray view of carbon: New measurement method promises spectacular insights into the interior of planets
• IReNA: Das Netzwerk der Netzwerke
• Producing medical isotopes at extreme energy density
• Laser flashes for cancer research - Research team achieves milestone in proton irradiation
• Schnelleres Licht für die Spitzen­for­schung aus Deutschland
• Milestone for laser technology: demonstration of a free-electron laser driven by plasma accelerated electron beams
• Laser-driven creation of high-energy ions brings next-gen accelerators out of the lab
• More quantum efficiency for maximum brilliance
• Frosty hydrogen as target: New method improves proton acceleration with high power laser
• Materie aus dem Nichts
• In memoriam Eckart Grosse
• Milestone in plasma acceleration: HZDR team achieves new energy record for next generation proton accelerators
• Ministerpräsidenten Schwesig und Kretschmer unterzeichnen Absichtserklä­rung zur Gründung des High Energy Density Instituts
• Metal foil as 3D scanner for electron beam: HZDR-Team presents new diagnostic tool for laser-plasma accelerator
• Weltweit erste laserbasierte Neu­tronen­quelle für Industrieeinsatz
• Next-generation lasers for pioneering research: Amplitude and HZDR strengthen collaboration with new research lab
• Tim Ziegler erhält renommierten John Dawson Thesis Preis
• RI Research Instruments und HZDR – eine Erfolgsgeschichte

Involved HZDR institutes

• Institute of Radiation Physics
• Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research

Collaborations

• Karlsruher Institut für Techno­logie
• Deutsches Elek­tronen­-Synchrotron DESY
• Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Material­ien und Energie
• For­schungs­zentrum Jülich
• GSI Helmholtz­zentrum für Schwerionen­for­schung

Contacts

• Prof. Dr. Peter Michel
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Cowan
• Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schramm

Publications

• Mirian, N. S.
  Impact of electron-beam energy spread on the generation of high harmonics in seeded free-electron lasers
  Physical Review Accelerators and Beams 29(2026), 29, 040701 (10.1103/13z8-2ktg)
• Campbell, D.; Heinemann, T.; Dickson, A. et al.
  Self-adaptive stabilization and quality boost for electron beams from all-optical plasma wakefield accelerators
  Physical Review Research 8(2026), 013273 (10.1103/p6ss-vgq5)
• Gutberlet, T.; Bleuel, M.; Brückel, T. et al.
  Recent developments and perspectives on laser-driven neutron sources (LDNSs)
  Review of Scientific Instruments 97(2026), 021501 (10.1063/5.0289016)
• Mirian, N. S.
  spectrum phase and constraints on THz-Optical klystron
  Physical Review Accelerators and Beams (2026) (10.48550/arXiv.2603.08223)
• Schoenwaelder, C.; Marret, A.; Assenbaum, S. et al.
  Time-resolved X-ray imaging of the current filamentation instability in solid-density plasmas
  Nature Communications 17(2026), 467 (10.1038/s41467-025-67160-2)
• Ma, S.; Arnold, A.; Michel, P. et al.
  Superconducting solenoid optimization and field measurements
  Nuclear Science and Techniques 37(2026), 48 (10.1007/s41365-025-01868-0)
• Karsli, O.; Aksoy, A.; Betz, M. et al.
  The first electron beam of Turkish Accelerator and Radiation Laboratory (TARLA): The Commissioning of TARLA 20 MeV Beamline
  Measurement Science and Technology 37(2026), 045901 (10.1088/1361-6501/ae2943)
• Abgaryan, M.; Cui, X.; Gopan, N. et al.
  Regularized Gradient Statistics Improve Generative Deep Learning Models of Super Resolution Microscopy
  Small Methods 9(2025)7, 2401900 (10.1002/smtd.202401900)
• Oksenhendler, T.; Bock, S.; Gebhardt, R. et al.
  Spatiotemporal characterization of pulse pedestals by imaging 2D Self-Referenced Spectral Interferometry
  High Power Laser Science and Engineering 13(2025), e93 (10.1017/hpl.2025.10079)
• Bock, S.; Oksenhendler, T.; Witting, T. et al.
  Dynamic Enhancement of Single-shot Temporal Contrast Measurement by Self-Referenced Spectral Interferometry
  Optics Express 33(2025)20, 42402-42407 (10.1364/OE.572556)
• Abada, A.; Abbrescia, M.; Abdolmaleki, H. et al.
  Future Circular Collider Feasibility Study Report, Volume 1 Physics, Experiments, Detectors
  European Physical Journal C 85(2025), 1468 (10.1140/epjc/s10052-025-15077-x)
• Bidhendi, M. M.; Goetzke, G.; Bermudez Macias, I. J. et al.
  Determination of the XUV Frequency Chirp at the Free-ElectronLaser FLASH via THz Streaking and Electron Beam Diagnostics
  Photonics 11(2025)12, 1153 (10.3390/photonics11121153)
• Samoilenko, D.; Mirian, N. S.; Zhou, D. et al.
  Effects of boundary conditions on coherent synchrotron radiation in echo-enabled harmonic generation
  Physical Review Accelerators and Beams 28(2025), 040702 (10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.28.040702)
• Mirian, N. S.; Korten, T.; Steinbach, P. et al.
  Virtual pulse reconstruction diagnostic for single-shot measurement of free electron laser radiation power
  Physical Review Accelerators and Beams 28(2025), 030703 (10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.28.030703)
• Oksenhendler, T.; Bock, S.; Dreyer, J. et al.
  Advanced Laser Pulse Metrology through 2D Self-Referenced Spectral Interferometry
  Scientific Reports 15(2025)1, 17729 (10.1038/s41598-025-02813-2)
• Yu, Q.; Shen, B.; Bock, S. et al.
  Definite vacuum for strong-field QED experiments
  High Power Laser Science and Engineering 13(2025), e50 (10.1017/hpl.2025.35)
• Abou Yassine, R.; Adamczewski-Musch, J.; Arnold, O. et al.
  First measurement of massive virtual photon emission from N* baryon resonances
  Physics Letters B 875(2026), 140338 (10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140338)
• Lu, P.; Arnold, A.; Teichert, J. et al.
  Simulation of ELBE SRF gun II for high-bunch-charge applications
  Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 830(2016), 536-544 (10.1016/j.nima.2016.05.087)
• Xiang, R.; Arnold, A.; Kamps, T. et al.
  Experimental studies of dark current in a superconducting RF photo-injector
  Physical Review Accelerators and Beams 17(2014)4, 043401 (10.1103/PhysRevSTAB.17.043401)
• Teichert, J.; Arnold, A.; Büttig, H. et al.
  Free-Electron Laser Operation with a Superconducting Radio-Frequency Photoinjector at ELBE
  Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 743(2014), 114-120 (10.1016/j.nima.2014.01.006)

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