Soreq Nuclear Research Center is a research and development institute situated near the localities of

Palmachim Palmachim ( he, פַּלְמַחִים) is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located about ten kilometers south of the Tel Aviv area along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, among the sand dunes, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gan Raveh Regional ...

and

Yavne Yavne ( he, יַבְנֶה) or Yavneh is a city in the Central District of Israel. In many English translations of the Bible, it is known as Jabneh . During Greco-Roman times, it was known as Jamnia ( grc, Ἰαμνία ''Iamníā''; la, Iamnia) ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. It operates under the auspices of the

Israel Atomic Energy Commission The Israel Atomic Energy Commission (IAEC) ( he, הוועדה לאנרגיה אטומית) is the governmental authority responsible for the State of Israel's activities in the nuclear field. History The establishment of the Israel Atomic Energy C ...

(IAEC).

History

The center conducts research in various physical sciences, particularly the development of many kinds of sensors,

laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The firs ...

s, atmospheric research,

non-destructive testing Nondestructive testing (NDT) is any of a wide group of analysis techniques used in science and technology industry to evaluate the properties of a material, component or system without causing damage. The terms nondestructive examination (NDE), n ...

techniques, space environment, nuclear safety, medical diagnostics and

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is "radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emit ...

. Soreq also produces various types of

radiopharmaceuticals Radiopharmaceuticals, or medicinal radiocompounds, are a group of pharmaceutical drugs containing radioactive isotopes. Radiopharmaceuticals can be used as diagnostic and therapeutic agents. Radiopharmaceuticals emit radiation themselves, which is ...

for use by health care organizations throughout the country. Some of the institute's research facilities include an AMF 5 MW pool-type light water

nuclear reactor A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. Nuclear reactors are used at nuclear power plants for electricity generation and in nuclear marine propulsion. Heat from nu ...

supplied in the late 1950s from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

under the

Atoms for Peace "Atoms for Peace" was the title of a speech delivered by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower to the UN General Assembly in New York City on December 8, 1953. The United States then launched an "Atoms for Peace" program that supplied equipmen ...

program and a 10

MeV In physics, an electronvolt (symbol eV, also written electron-volt and electron volt) is the measure of an amount of kinetic energy gained by a single electron accelerating from rest through an electric potential difference of one volt in vacuum. ...

proton

cyclotron A cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator invented by Ernest O. Lawrence in 1929–1930 at the University of California, Berkeley, and patented in 1932. Lawrence, Ernest O. ''Method and apparatus for the acceleration of ions'', filed: J ...

accelerator, as well as extensive laboratory and testing facilities. Currently under construction is a 5-40 MeV, 0.04-5 mA proton and deuteron superconducting

linear accelerator A linear particle accelerator (often shortened to linac) is a type of particle accelerator that accelerates charged subatomic particles or ions to a high speed by subjecting them to a series of oscillating electric potentials along a linear b ...

scheduled for commissioning in 2013. The center is named after the nearby stream of

Soreq Soreq Nuclear Research Center is a research and development institute situated near the localities of Palmachim and Yavne in Israel. It operates under the auspices of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission (IAEC). History The center conducts res ...

. The center operates under the safeguards of the

International Atomic Energy Agency The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. It was established in 1 ...

Architecture

Noted American modernist architect

Philip Johnson Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8, 1906 – January 25, 2005) was an American architect best known for his works of modern and postmodern architecture. Among his best-known designs are his modernist Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut; the p ...

designed the center's building in 1956. The project was Johnson's first government commission. Dr. Lev Zetlin, the structural engineer for this project, introduced Philip Johnson to Israeli authorities and facilitated his hiring. Zetlin, one of the most renowned practitioners of his profession, worked very closely with Johnson in the design and construction of the reactor. It was Zetlin who set the parameters and established the conditions for the architect and turned Johnson's ideas into reality.

References

Oral History interview with Mr. Shraga Biran, June 21, 2018.

External links

Official websiteSoreq Nuclear Research Center (SNRC)
NTI
The Radiological Accident in Soreq
International Atomic Energy Agency, May 1993
Центр ядерных исследований «Сорек»
{{authority control Research institutes in Israel Israeli nuclear development Nuclear research institutes Philip Johnson buildings

History

Architecture

See also

References

External links