China launches world's first heavy-ion beam facility(4)

The schematic diagram of the Low Energy high intensity heavy ion Accelerator Facility (LEAF). (Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn)

Professor Gao Ning of Shandong University, one of LEAF's early users, highlighted the facility's potential for advancing research into irradiation-resistant materials.

"The high-current ion beams produced by LEAF have groundbreaking significance for reducing experimental costs and shortening timelines. For example, conventional ion implantation equipment can irradiate an area of about 1 cm by 1 cm, whereas LEAF's beam can cover 10 cm by 10 cm. This allows us to irradiate 100 samples under identical conditions simultaneously," Gao said.

"With LEAF, we can save about two-thirds of the funding while producing samples 100 times larger. What once required weeks can now be completed in just one or two days," he added.

Sun noted that foreign scientists have already begun using LEAF, and it will be open to researchers worldwide in the future.