Brightest light source project coming up in China within 6 years, to cost $698 million

A next-generation synchrotron radiation facility is coming up in Beijing, a researcher from Chinese Academy of Sciences, one of the top research institutes in China, has said. The facility will be the brightest light source facility in the world.

The construction for the project will kick off in November 2018 and it will be completed within six years, said Dong Yuhui. The total cost of the project is estimated at 4.8 billion yuan ($698.4 million).

The facility is dubbed Beijing Light Source. It will create aerospace materials among other products and will meet the national security demands. The facility will offer high-resolution method to know substantial structures better.

The Beijing Light Source will be the fourth-generation light source. The key performance indicators of the facility would be higher than the third-generation ones.

The Beijing Light Source will produce the brightest X-rays in the world which will be 70 times brighter than the US National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) and 10 times brighter than Sweden's MAX IV, the strongest of its kind in the world so far.

The atomic structure of various substances could be measured using the Bright X-rays. The highter brightness will also help people get more details of the substances, which will be like using flashlight to see things, said Dong.

China currently has light sources ranging from first generation to third generation including the first-generation facility BSRF in Beijing, the second-generation facility NHLS in Hefei, Anhui province, and the third-generation SSRF in Shanghai.

More than 50 such facilities are currently available around the world. They offer support in many research fields. In the medical field, the light source plays a crucial role. They help researchers know mechanisms of tumors and cerebrovascular diseases.