ESS Bilbao

The ESS-Bilbao (ESSB) light ion linear accelerator has been conceived as a multi-purpose machine, useful as the core of a new standalone accelerator facility in southern Europe giving support to local beam users and accelerator physicists, as well as fulfilling specifications so as to serve as a driving injector for the European Spallation Source (ESS) once this latter project gets off the ground.

The ESSB project aims to develop significant in-house capabilities needed to support the country participation in a good number of accelerator projects worldwide (IFMIF/EVEDA, LINAC4/SPL, FAIR, XFEL, ESRF upgrades, ISIS-FETS etc.). In this context, the designed modular, multipurpose accelerator should serve as a benchmark for components and subsystems relevant for the ESS project as well as to provide the spanish science and technology network with hands-on experience on power accelerators science and technology. Likewise, local specialised industry who has identified a number of opportunities within this niche of activity, should also largely benefit from the new facility.

Both proton and neutron beams are expected to be used by a local user community showing an ever increasing interest in using charged particle beams for several disparate branchs of physical and biomedical sciences.

The CURRENT PROJECTS are avaliable here