Nuclear physics as well as fundamental weak-interaction physics and astrophysics questions will be addressed using laser spectroscopy techniques, decay spectroscopy of radioactive species, mass spectrometry and other trap-assisted measurements. Experience at other ISOL facilities evidences that ion beams with a high degree of purity are needed to push experiments towards the limits of stability. The most efficient and universal way of achieving isotopic pure beams is a high-resolution mass separator in combination with RFQ cooler and buncher.

Therefore, the main elements of DESIR are an RFQ cooler and buncher called SHIRAC (SPIRAL2 High-Intensity Radiofrequency Cooler) aiming at cooling and bunching micro-ampere beams (q = 1+, E = 10 to 60 kV) with an output beam emittance of about 1/>/math>mm mrad, a high-resolution mass separator HRS with a resolution of m/m ≈ 20000, and an experimental hall of size 1500m². This DESIR hall will house off-line sources to test and tune experimental setups before beams will be sent to the different setups as proposed and installed by users. This experimental equipment consists of LASER spectroscopy setups, decay-study setups and ions or atomic traps.

The DESIR facility will receive beams from the two SPIRAL2 production caves (the red and yellow caves) from fission reactions of ²³⁸U nuclei, fusion-evaporation and transfer reaction as well as from deep-inelastic collisions. An additional production scheme is due to reaction products from the S3 separator spectrometer, which uses also fusion-evaporation, transfer and deep-inelastic reaction, but allows also the production of beams of refractory elements and very short-lived isotopes. Finally beams from SPIRAL1 will also be available in DESIR.

Details about the DESIR facility, the physics case of DESIR, and a preliminary budget can be found in the Letter of Intent submitted to the SPIRAL2 Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC).

A detailed technical description of the DESIR installation is given in a Technical Design Report submitted to the SPIRAL SAC on December 19, 2008.

Le projet Andromède a pour objectif de construire une nouvelle génération de système d’analyse des propriétés de la matière en utilisant des nanoparticules de haute énergie qui bombardent des échantillons de matière.

Le principal avantage d’Andromède réside d’une part, dans la simplicité de préparation des échantillons par rapport aux techniques habituelles et d’autre part, dans la possibilité d’analyser ces échantillons à la pression atmosphérique.
Dans le domaine des nanotechnologies, il y a un grand besoin d’outils d’analyse des propriétés d’analyse de surface à très haute résolution, complémentaires des spectromètres de masse ou microscopes électroniques.

S³ (Super Separator Spectrometer) is a device designed for experiments with the very high intensity stable beams of LINAG, the superconducting linear accelerator of GANIL, which will be built in the framework of SPIRAL2. These beams, which will provide in a first phase of SPIRAL2 ions with A/q = 3, can reach intensities exceeding 100pμA for lighter ions - A<40-50 - depending on the final choice of the ECR (Electron Cyclotron Resonance) ion source. These unprecedented intensities open new opportunities in several physics domains, e.g. super-heavy and very-heavy nuclei, spectroscopy at and beyond the dripline, isomers and ground state properties, multi-nucleon transfer and deep-inelastic reactions.

The S³ basic design is composed of a two-stage separator. This device, proposed by Argonne, is based on a Momentum Achromat followed by a Mass Separator : MAMS. The basic principle of this device is to first suppress primary beam by at least 1:1000 by a pre-separator (momentum achromat) and then do further beam suppression and physical energy and mass channel selection by a mass separator. This device will have the capabilities to fulfil most of the requirements described before and is well optimized for direct and symmetric kinematics fusion-evaporation reactions. This device is a next-generation separator built on the principles of the Oak Ridge RMS and the Texas A&M MARS separators.

P2IO est l’un des 100 laboratoires d’excellence (labex) approuvés par le gouvernement en Mars 2011 dans le cadre des Investissements d’avenir financés par le Grand Emprunt de 2010. P2IO se définit comme le réseau de tous les laboratoires du Sud de l’Ile de France impliqués dans la physique de l’infiniment petit, de l’infiniment grand et de l’étude des conditions d’apparition de la vie.

Les laboratoires et équipes partenaires relèvent de 5 tutelles : CEA, CNRS, Ecole Polytechnique, Université Paris Sud, et Université Paris Diderot et sont formés des unités suivantes : CPHT, CSNSM, IAS, IMNC, IPHT, IPN, IRFU, IRSD, LAL, LLR, LPT, SERMA.