European XFEL will build a visitor and conference centre with school labs on their campus in Schenefeld. The European XFEL Council, the company’s supreme organ, and the German state of Schleswig-Holstein have now given the green light for the project. Construction is expected to start in 2020. The centre will give the general public the opportunity to learn more about the research of the international facility. Planned is an interactive exhibition space covering 500 m2, which will explain how the X-ray laser works and what sort of research scientists are using it for, and which will complement the content of the planned DESY visitor centre. Tours and talks for everyone are also part of the concept. In addition, two school labs will also be included, which will be run in close collaboration with the DESY school lab. Events and seminars intended for a variety of audiences, from events for the general public, to scientific conferences and workshops will be possible in the conference area.
About European XFEL
The European XFEL is a 3.4 km long research facility extending from Hamburg to the neighbouring town of Schenefeld in the German Federal State of Schleswig-Holstein. With its repetition rate of 27,000 pulses per second and a peak brilliance a billion times higher than that of the best synchrotron X-ray radiation sources, the European XFEL enables the investigation of scientific problems in a variety of disciplines, including among many others: Structural Biology, Chemistry, Planetary Science, the study of matter under extreme conditions.
