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| CERN Vacuum Group | |
|---|---|
| Name | CERN Vacuum Group |
| Formation | 1954 |
| Headquarters | Meyrin, Geneva |
| Location | Meyrin, Switzerland |
| Region served | European Organization for Nuclear Research |
| Parent organization | CERN |
CERN Vacuum Group The CERN Vacuum Group is the central technical unit within CERN responsible for the design, construction, maintenance, and innovation of ultra-high vacuum systems used across accelerator projects such as the Large Hadron Collider, the Proton Synchrotron, and the Antiproton Decelerator. It collaborates with national laboratories, industrial partners, and university groups to ensure vacuum integrity for experiments including ATLAS, CMS, ALICE, and LHCb. The Group's work underpins beam stability, cryogenics integration, and detector environments, interfacing with projects like LEP, ISOLDE, and SPS.
The origins trace to early vacuum challenges at CERN facilities dating back to the era of the Proton Synchrotron and the Synchrocyclotron where pioneers from Francois Lacoste-era workshops adapted techniques from Fritz Haber-inspired gas science and influences from John Sealy Townsend studies. During the construction of LEP the Group expanded strongly to address long-length chamber fabrication, drawing on expertise linked to Paul Dirac-era vacuum theory applications and collaborations with DESY, SLAC, Fermilab, and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. The Large Hadron Collider programme prompted major modernization, integrating lessons from Super Proton Synchrotron upgrades and coordination with industrial partners such as Air Liquide, Pfeiffer Vacuum, and Varian-legacy companies.
The Group operates within the Accelerator & Technology Sector and coordinates with the Engineering Department, Cryogenics Group, and the Spares and Logistics Service. Its facilities include large-scale vacuum fabrication halls at the Meyrin site, a dedicated vacuum test laboratory adjacent to the Prévessin site, and cleanrooms used for detector vacuum interfaces with experiments like ATLAS and CMS. Specialized test stands connect to infrastructure at Point 1 (ATLAS), Point 5 (CMS), and test beam areas associated with North Area experiments. The Group maintains partnerships with the European Space Agency, ITER Organization, CERN Medical Applications, Paul Scherrer Institute, and multiple technological institutes.
R&D spans material science research with groups from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, University of Geneva, Imperial College London, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology on topics such as low-outgassing alloys, thin-film coatings, and vacuum-compatible sensors. Projects have integrated findings from Nobel Prize in Physics-related research infrastructures and techniques used at Diamond Light Source, European XFEL, and FLASH. The Group develops simulation tools interoperable with software from CERN OpenLab, computational groups at Princeton University, and vacuum modelling efforts connected to COMSOL Multiphysics and bespoke codes influenced by Monte Carlo method approaches. R&D collaborations include industrial research with Thales Group, Siemens, ABB Group, and instrumentation from National Instruments.
Technologies include ultra-high vacuum chambers, bake-out ovens, ion pumps, non-evaporable getter (NEG) coatings, and cryopumping interfaces used in machines like LHCb and the Antiproton Decelerator. The Group applies techniques such as residual gas analysis, vacuum leak detection, and surface analysis performed using tools derived from Auger electron spectroscopy and methods used at CERN Radioprotection. It integrates vacuum solutions for cryomodules developed in collaboration with DESY and Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, adopting standards from ISO 286-1 and industry practices from European Committee for Standardization. The Group also leverages additive manufacturing methods studied with ETH Zurich and thin-film deposition research connected with IN2P3 laboratories.
Key contributions include the design and delivery of the LHC beam vacuum system, NEG coating campaigns for long straight sections, vacuum sectorization for luminosity upgrades with High-Luminosity LHC partners, and refurbishment programs during Long Shutdown 1 and Long Shutdown 2. The Group supported injector chain projects including upgrades to the LINAC4 and refurbishment of PS Booster components, and provided vacuum systems for testbeds such as the CERN Linear Electron Accelerator for Research (CLEAR). It has worked on cross-disciplinary efforts with CERN Neutrinos to Gran Sasso-era initiatives, supported accelerator-driven projects at ISOLDE and MEDICIS, and contributed vacuum expertise to international collaborations including CERN-ESA joint programs and industry consortia led by EU Framework Programme projects.
The Group runs apprenticeship schemes and technical training in vacuum science linked to CERN Technical Studentship programs, apprenticeships coordinated with Geneva University of Applied Sciences and Arts, and doctoral projects co-supervised with University of Oxford, University of Manchester, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, and Università di Milano. It organizes workshops alongside International Vacuum Congress sessions, contributes to schools such as CERN Summer Student Programme and outreach events with European Physical Society and Geneva Science Festival, and collaborates on training modules for industrial partners associated with EUREKA networks.
Category:CERN Category:Vacuum technology organizations