Europe's magnetism takes off
High magnetic fields and pulsed magnetic fields represent technologies that have helped boost research in physics, chemistry, biology, materials science and biomedicine, among other disciplines. The EU-funded Euromagnet project brought together various facilities from around Europe to further this exciting area of research. The project organised access across borders to Europe's different magnetic field facilities in Belgium, Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands. It supported two joint research activities (JRAs) among different stakeholders and consortia, encouraging knowledge exchange on the subject. The facilities were able to provide international stakeholders with static magnetic fields of up to 33 T, as well as pulsed magnetic fields in the 60–100 T range. Both JRAs opened new avenues of research related to high-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and infrared (IR) spectroscopy in pulsed fields. The first initiative sought to develop NMR spectroscopy at very high magnetic fields in resistive magnets of up to 40 T and in pulsed magnets to 60 T, bringing together all high-field NMR initiatives in Europe. The second looked at upgrading IR spectroscopy techniques with pulsed magnetic fields in the 20–100 T range. To achieve these aims the project initiated an exchange programme featuring bilateral research visits and training opportunities. It conducted several workshops on specific research topics and novel experimental approaches, in addition to establishing a school for young scientists that teaches physics related to high magnetic fields. A number of exciting experiments were conducted through the project's network of installations, yielding important discoveries and applications linked to NMR and IR. Over the long term, the project aimed to enable the conducting of experiments that combine free electron lasers (FELs) as a source of IR radiation with pulsed fields. Such an initiative, among other enterprising ones, is destined to push the boundaries of this discipline and highlight Europe's pioneering capabilities in magnetic field technology.
