Advanced heavy-ion accelerator tested in south China

The world's largest full-ion accelerator, the High Intensity heavy-ion Accelerator Facility (HIAF), completed beam commissioning during testing on Tuesday in south China's Guangdong Province, according to the Institute of Modern Physics (IMP) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Located in Guangdong's Huizhou City, the HIAF is a major national sci-tech infrastructure project led by the IMP. Construction began in December 2018, with over 6,000 large-scale pieces of equipment, nearly 5 million components, and a total pipeline length exceeding 1 million meters.

The research team adopted a new model for large-scale scientific engineering driven by digital twin technology, cutting the installation time from the typical two to three years to just eight months.

The IMP said the HIAF will conduct beam performance tests and is expected to carry out its first scientific experiment by the end of 2025, followed by technical acceptance.

Once fully operational, the HIAF will provide heavy-ion beams with the world's highest pulse intensity and the most precise multifunctional nuclear mass spectrometer. It will serve as a leading global research platform for exploring the limits of atomic nuclei, unraveling nuclear astrophysical processes, advancing nuclear energy development, and enabling multidisciplinary applications.

According to the IMP, the HIAF will also provide a shared platform for facilities, services, data and talent, attracting top scientists and research teams worldwide to collaborate on related research.