Developing the skills and expanding the knowledge base of a group, or even just one person, can create positive change which ripples through society to generate lasting impact 

The European Network for Light Ion Hadron Therapy (ENLIGHT) was founded over two decades ago to coordinate the research of professionals in the field of hadron therapy – a type of radiotherapy that uses beams of protons and ions to treat cancer – across Europe. Within this framework, training opportunities are offered to research students from around the world.

The Sarajevo Ion Accelerator, a long-standing collaboration which enables students at the University of Sarajevo to participate in research projects and experiments at CERN, is a project that has emerged from this framework. Along with researchers from CERN and Spanish institute CIEMAT, the team from Sarajevo is currently working on pre-injector accelerator system components for use in medical and cultural heritage applications. 

Their work has three main elements:

• First, the commissioning of a radiofrequency quadrupole (RFQ) accelerator which accelerates protons and helium ions, producing beams for medical applications including cancer therapy.
• Second, the commissioning of a commercially produced electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion source, which can be injected into the RFQ accelerator to further accelerate the helium and proton beams.
• And lastly, the testing of extraction systems for a low-intensity proton source suitable for societal applications such as cultural heritage diagnostics.

On the project, Amer Ajanovic, an early career researcher who is part of the team, says, “At its very core is recognising an opportunity for knowledge transfer of the innovative ideas behind CERN's radiofrequency quadrupole technology to a variety of societal applications”.

After production, the ECR ion source will remain part of a test stand that will enable students and other researchers at CERN to learn about the technology and gain hands-on experience using it, providing further capacity-building opportunities. The accelerator, meanwhile, will eventually return to the University of Sarajevo, where researchers will be able to continue benefiting from the learning and competency development opportunities it provides.

 “The successes we are having are fruits of hard and committed labour by a small but truly great team of young people, and experienced visionaries in the field to guide us. And for me, it represents a chance to learn, contribute to the continued research and development of our projects, and with the help of our collaborators at CERN, expand on that in my hometown of Sarajevo via education and further opportunities to develop and do cutting-edge research with our students in the emerging lab”, explains Amer. 

The result is a transfer of knowledge, skills and equipment that benefits wider society, both through the potential applications of this technology, and the learning opportunities it provides.

You can support ENLIGHT training through the CERN & Society Foundation. Read more here.