The Frank Laboratory of Neutron Physics is a prominent place for scientific research in condensed matter physics and nuclear physics using the approaches of nuclear methods. Its status was achieved thanks to the instrumentation basis specific to the laboratory. The peculiar properties of neutrons in particular, innovations in optical spectroscopy, including Raman, have proven their niche in studies of the chemical composition and structure of the hard and soft condensed matter.
The facility that occupies a pivotal position in the laboratory is for many years now the IBR-2 nuclear reactor. It is a world-unique reactor operating in the pulsed mode due to the mechanical modulation of its reactivity. Its main purpose is a production of neutrons that are utilized in the neutron-based investigations and applications at the complex of instruments surrounding the reactor.
The neutron capabilities of the IBR-2 reactor are complemented successfully by the source of resonance neutrons IREN, while the ion beams used in analytical studies are produced at the Van-der-Graaff electrostatic accelerator EG-5 (test mode). The nuclear methods of research are very conveniently harmonized with the optical techniques possible at the powerful CARS spectrometer (test mode). Finally, the TANGRA facility (test mode) is dedicated to the applied research of neutron-nuclear interactions.
