EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB: Technical Design Report Published

With the publication of the Technical Design Report (TDR), EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB takes a decisive step toward the realization of the world’s first user facility based on plasma acceleration.

The project, led by the INFN National Laboratories of Frascati, defines in detail the construction of a compact 1 GeV accelerator that integrates X-band RF technology and beam-driven Plasma WakeField Acceleration (PWFA), with the goal of realizing a Free Electron Laser operating in the water window, beamline AQUA in the figure, a strategic spectral region for applications in biology, materials science, and life sciences. The project is funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, by INFN, and by a contribution from the Lazio Region aimed at the realization of an industrial applications beamline named ARIA.

The TDR is the result of an extensive collective effort: 176 signatories from 28 institutes contributed to the definition of the project, demonstrating the strength of a highly integrated national and international scientific network. Alongside the Accelerator and Technical Divisions of LNF, which played a central role in the machine and infrastructure design, fundamental contributions were provided by CNR, Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, ENEA, Sapienza University of Rome, the University of Milan, and the University of Rome Tor Vergata.

EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB, shown below, represents one of the two European pillars of the EuPRAXIA project, included in the ESFRI roadmap, and provides a concrete demonstration of the possibility of building more compact, energy-efficient, and scalable accelerators. The adopted acceleration configuration, combining X-band RF technology with high-gradient PWFA, marks a turning point in the evolution of compact radiation sources, particularly for Free Electron Laser facilities, but also for those based on Compton scattering and betatron radiation.

Overall layout of the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB accelerator.

The international Project Review Committee, which has followed the project since 2021, expressed a fully positive assessment in its final report, recognizing the technical robustness, engineering maturity, and feasibility of the initiative.

“LNF has always been committed to the development of new accelerator technologies,” emphasizes Director Paola Gianotti. “Following in the footsteps of Bruno Touschek, who led the construction of the first matter–antimatter collider, we once again find ourselves at the forefront in guiding the community toward a new technological leap.” 

“With the publication of the TDR, we enter the implementation phase of an infrastructure that is not merely a technological project, but a strategic platform for the future of advanced accelerators in Europe. This achievement stems from an extraordinary team effort, fully consistent with the long and distinguished history of LNF and reaffirms Frascati as an international center of excellence in Particle Accelerator Physics,” declares Massimo Ferrario, coordinator of the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB project.

The Technical Design Report is freely available at the following link.