(Cornell University: Ithaca, NY) -- In a major boost for X-ray science and accelerator physics, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has committed about $109 million toward Cornell University’s continued operation of an X-ray synchrotron facility. The money will also help to develop a new kind of X-ray source that promises to revolutionize the field.

The Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), one of five national facilities for synchrotron X-ray research in the United States, has received $77 million from the NSF to continue operations through at least March 2014. This complements an additional $7 million from the National Institutes of Health to provide support for biomedical research at CHESS. In addition, the NSF has also awarded Cornell $32 million toward research and development of a next-generation X-ray source technology, called an “energy recovery linac” (ERL).

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