The Research Neutron Source Heinz Maier-Leibnitz (Forschungsreaktor München II or FRM II) (german: Forschungs-Neutronenquelle Heinz Maier-Leibnitz) is a leading German

research reactor Research reactors are nuclear fission-based nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or marit ...

and

neutron source A neutron source is any device that emits neutrons, irrespective of the mechanism used to produce the neutrons. Neutron sources are used in physics, engineering, medicine, nuclear weapons, petroleum exploration, biology, chemistry, and nuclear p ...

, named in honor of the physicist

Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Heinz Maier-Leibnitz (28 March 1911, in Esslingen am Neckar – 16 December 2000, in Allensbach) was a German physicist. He made contributions to nuclear spectroscopy, coincidence measurement techniques, radioactive tracers for biochemistry and m ...

who had conducted a highly successful research program at its predecessor, the . Operated by the

Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; german: Technische Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied science, applied and Natural sci ...

, it is located on its campus in Garching.

Overview

The FRM II is located in the immediate neighbourhood of FRM I, on the research and university campus near

Garching Garching bei München (''Garching near Munich'') or Garching is a town in Bavaria, Germany, near Munich. It is the home of several research institutes and university departments on its campus. It became a city on 14 September 1990. Location The ...

(18 km north of

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

). It is operated by the

. Several other universities and research institutions are taking part in the scientific use. The reactor was built by

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational conglomerate corporation and the largest industrial manufacturing company in Europe headquartered in Munich with branch offices abroad. The principal divisions of the corporation are ''Industry'', ''E ...

. It went critical on March 2, 2004, and reached the full power of 20 MW on August, 24. Since April 2005, it is in routine operation. The regular schedule comprises 4 reactor cycles per year, with 60 days per cycle. Highly enriched uranium in a high-density uranium silicide-aluminium dispersion fuel element yields an excellent ratio of neutron flux to thermal power. A liquid deuterium moderator ("cold source") gives a world-leading cold-neutron flux density.

Usage

The FRM II is optimized for neutron scattering experiments at beam tubes and neutron guides. Furthermore, there are irradiation facilities, for example to produce medically used radioisotopes (as Lu-177), and a tumour treatment facility. The more than 25 scientific instruments are operated by different chairs of the TU München, other universities, Helmholtz Centres and Max-Planck Institutes. The Jülich Centre for Neutron Science (JCNS) of the Forschungszentrum Jülich operates its own outstation at the FRM II. Each instrument offers 2/3 of its beam time for scientists from all over the world. 30 percent is foreseen for industrial use.http://cdn.frm2.tum.de/fileadmin/stuff/instruments/BlueBook/exp-fac_cs4_Januar2011_verlinkt2.pdf

References

External links

* http://www.frm2.tum.de website Nuclear research reactors Technical University of Munich Neutron facilities Research institutes in Germany {{Munichdistrict-geo-stub