UK director of the EMFL partnership

Magnetic fields are powerful tools for studying the properties of matter and are essential for modern science. They were crucial for the ground-breaking research that led to 20 Nobel prizes in Physics, Chemistry and Medicine, most recently for the development of magnetic resonance imaging (P. Mansfield, 2003 Nobel Prize in Medicine) and for research on graphene (A. Geim and K.S. Novoselov, 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics).

Magnetic fields underpin future scientific and technological developments by providing a powerful means of understanding and manipulating matter. This research is constantly refreshed by the discovery of new materials and necessitates the use of advanced characterization techniques, the execution of high-field experiments with high spatial and energy resolution over a wide range of temperatures down to millikelvin, or in extreme environments, such as high-pressure, and the association of high magnetic fields with large instruments, such as neutron sources, synchrotrons, and free electron lasers.

This project will support high magnetic field research in the UK, which is a member of the European Magnetic Field Laboratory (EMFL). The EMFL unites, coordinates and reinforces all existing European large-scale high magnetic field research infrastructures in a single body to deliver innovation in science and technologies. The UK community will access a well-established facility for research with high magnetic fields, it will develop new capabilities and will be directly involved in long-term, large scale projects that require international cooperation, for example by developing beyond-state-of-the-art magnets and by integrating high magnetic fields with neutron and synchrotron sources. The synergy of the EMFL with other large-scale national and international facilities has the potential to bring the UK to the forefront of important scientific and technological developments building on the UK's existing strengths and position of the UK as a world-leader in high magnetic field research. Outcomes of this project will include a stronger and more diverse high-field user community and a wider socio-economic impact.