CERN IRRAD

CERN IRRAD
Name	IRRAD Facility
Caption	Proton irradiation facility at CERN
Established	1996
Location	Meyrin, Geneva, Switzerland
Type	Particle irradiation service
Parent	European Organization for Nuclear Research

CERN IRRAD CERN IRRAD is a proton and mixed-field irradiation facility operated by the European Organization for Nuclear Research at the Meyrin site near Geneva. It provides controlled irradiation environments for testing electronics, sensors, and materials used in high-energy physics experiments such as those at the Large Hadron Collider and for applications in spaceflight, medical physics, and industry. The facility integrates accelerator infrastructure, dosimetry, and sample handling to support collaborative research across universities, national laboratories, and industrial partners including Fermilab, DESY, and KEK.

Overview

IRRAD functions as a dedicated irradiation and radiation-hardness assurance service within the portfolio of the CERN Radiation Protection Group and collaborates with groups such as the Accelerator Technology community and the ATLAS and CMS experiments. Its mission includes qualification of electronics for radiation tolerance, characterization of sensor degradation for detectors like Silicon Tracker systems, and lifetime studies for materials used in accelerators such as the Super Proton Synchrotron components. Users range from teams in the European Space Agency and the European Southern Observatory to manufacturers supplying ESA deep-space missions and medical-device companies.

Facilities and Instrumentation

The IRRAD complex leverages the Proton Synchrotron and downstream beamlines to deliver protons at variable energies and fluxes. Key infrastructure includes dedicated irradiation stations, sample holders, environmental control cabinets, and automated stages for positioning. Instrumentation comprises calibrated ionization chambers traceable to standards like those maintained by National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom) and Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, together with semiconductor dosimeters and thermoluminescent detectors often cross-referenced to benchmarks from the International Atomic Energy Agency. In-situ metrology is supported by beam-profile monitors, Faraday cup systems, and scintillator-based diagnostics developed with partners from INFN and CEA.

Irradiation Techniques and Beamlines

IRRAD offers proton irradiations typically in the hundreds of MeV range delivered from the PS Booster and routed via the East Area beamlines; mixed-field irradiations reproduce hadronic cascades similar to those in the ATLAS calorimeter environment. Techniques include single-event effect testing using pulse-mode beams for radiation-induced soft errors assessment and displacement damage testing for silicon detectors with well-characterized non-ionizing energy loss spectra. Beamlines employ attenuation, beam-spot shaping, and raster scanning to achieve uniform fluence across wafers or boards; ancillary setups enable gamma irradiations using converted bremsstrahlung sources and neutron fields in collaboration with facilities like TRIUMF and SCK•CEN.

Research Programs and Applications

Research at IRRAD addresses radiation hardness of front-end electronics such as Application-Specific Integrated Circuits developed at Universität Zürich and University of Cambridge, qualification of sensors for upgrades of experiments including LHCb upgrade and ATLAS IBL, and endurance testing for spaceborne electronics destined for Mars missions and satellite constellations built by firms collaborating with Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space. Materials programs investigate embrittlement, swelling, and activation of metals and composites used in accelerator components such as colimator heads and superconducting magnet supports developed with ITER and CERN Magnet groups. IRRAD also supports applied studies in radiation therapy device resilience, partnering with Varian Medical Systems and academic radiotherapy centers.

Safety and Radiation Protection

Operations adhere to CERN-wide radiation protection standards coordinated with the CERN Radiation Protection Group and overseen by national regulators including the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health for site compliance. Safety systems comprise interlocked access control, real-time dosimetry, and post-irradiation cooling and decay storage to manage activation products. Samples and experimental rigs are surveyed using gamma spectrometry referenced to databases maintained by the International Nuclear Information System to determine handling restrictions. Personnel training follows protocols established in cooperation with occupational health services at CERN and partner institutions.

History and Development

IRRAD originated in the mid-1990s as a response to increasing need for systematic radiation-hardness assurance for electronics and detectors for projects such as LEP upgrades and early LHC preparations. It evolved through phased upgrades of beamline optics, dosimetry, and automation driven by collaboration with detector R&D groups from CERN member states and international laboratories. Notable milestones include integration of mixed-field capabilities to reproduce complex hadronic environments experienced in collider detectors and expansion of user support paralleling major detector upgrade campaigns for HL-LHC planning.

Access, Collaboration, and User Program

Access to IRRAD is provided via a user program managed through proposal calls and institutional agreements, enabling academic groups, national laboratories, and industrial partners to perform irradiation campaigns. Collaborative frameworks include Memoranda of Understanding with projects like ATLAS and CMS upgrade consortia and bilateral arrangements with external labs such as Brookhaven National Laboratory. Users benefit from technical support, data acquisition services, and post-irradiation analysis carried out in partnership with university groups from University of Oxford, Imperial College London, and CERN fellowship schemes. Successful proposals typically describe fluence requirements, sample geometry, and data deliverables aligned with community standards.

Category:Particle physics facilities