SPIRAL2 at GANIL: A world leading ISOL facility at the dawn of the next decade

To pursue the investigation of a new territory of nuclei with extreme N/Z, called "terra incognita", several projects, all aiming at the increase by several orders of magnitude of RIB intensities are now under discussion worldwide. In Europe, two major new projects have been approved recently: FAIR@GSI, using the so-called "in-flight" method, and SPIRAL2@GANIL, based on the ISOL method. The main goal of SPIRAL2 is clearly to extend our knowledge of the limit of existence and the structure of nuclei deeply in the medium and heavy mass region (A = 60-140), which is today an almost unexplored continent. SPIRAL2 is based on a high power, CW, superconducting driver LINAC, delivering 5 mA of deuteron beams at 40 MeV (200 kW) directed on a C converter+ Uranium target and producing therefore more than 1013 fissions/s. The expected radioactive beam intensities for exotic species in the mass range from A = 60 to A = 140, of the order of 10(6)-10(10) pps will surpass by two order of magnitude any existing facility in the world. These unstable atoms will be available at energies between a few keV/n to 15 MeV/n. The same driver will accelerate high intensity (100 mu A to I mA), heavier ions up to Ar at 14 MeV/n producing also proton rich exotic nuclei. In applied areas SPIRAL2 is considered as a powerful variable energy neutron source, a must for studying the impact of nuclear fission and fusion on materials. The intensities of these unstable species are excellent opportunities for new tracers and diagnostics either for solid state, material or for radiobiological science and medicine. The technical design has reached the point where SPIRAL2 is ready for construction. Project status and foreseen schedules will be presented. Scientific and technical R&D programs in collaboration with EU and International partners for the facility as well as for the associated innovative new instruments will be discussed. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.