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BY BIOCAT

The ALBA Synchrotron (CELLS), located in Cerdanyola del Vallès (Barcelona), is now ready for routine operation and will start receiving its first researchers, who will be working with the light generated by the synchrotron. The news was announced yesterday afternoon by the Catalan Minister of Economy and Knowledge, Andreu Mas-Colell, and the Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation, Cristina Garmendia.

Last March, ALBA, the first particle accelerator in Spain, generated light for the first time, using electron beams. This was a fundamental step towards being able to start research using this technology. Ministers Mas-Colell and Garmendia toured the ALBA facility, which houses the accelerator itself plus various laboratories. After the visit, they both attended a meeting of the the ALBA Governing Council, on which Garmendia serves as vice-president; it was Mas-Colell’s first ALBA Governing Council meeting since having been named Minister. At the meeting the synchrotron’s operational calendar was drawn up in order to maximize its efficiency and satisfy research demand for light.

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