The ILL Endurance upgrade programme
ILL technology for the next decade of science innovation
With the completion of the Endurance upgrade programme in 2024, the ILL is at its highest performance level ever. The programme consolidates our position as a world leader in neutron sciences, contributing to shape the European neutron landscape in a collaborative and complementary way. The Endurance programme has delivered 30 new and upgraded instruments and infrastructures, resulting in a suite of 43 state-of-the-art neutron instruments which is unparalleled in the world, in terms of the range of possibilities on offer, the quality of the capabilities, and the overall size of the instrument suite.
The impacts on science include count rate increases by a factor of 10 on average (ranging from 4 to 25); background reduction; extended q ranges; new sample environments; and new data treatment software.
Endurance has provided new instruments (DALI, FIPPS, NeXT, MoTo, XtremeD, SAM, SuperSUN), rebuilt instruments (PANTHER, SHARPER, D10+, D11+, D16) and upgraded numerous other instruments.
The Endurance Programme has delivered unprecedented capabilities across a range of fields such as neutron imaging, neutron polarisation analysis, new sample environments, as well as new data treatment software.
Modernised support instruments and facilities for neutron technology R&D will continue to deliver cutting-edge instrumentation, benefiting also other neutron facilities.
The technical achievements of Endurance are impressive. H15, designed and engineered at the ILL, is the most complex neutron guide system ever realised. With installation finished in February 2024, the guide is now delivering neutrons to instruments D007, D11+, SAM and SHARPER. Simulations of neutron transport and guide optics played a crucial role, revealing routes to optimisation otherwise hidden by complexity.
The Endurance projects
ILL user instrument suite
In building ILL22
In building ILL5
In building ILL7
FIPPS, NeXT and D11 are supported by the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes (AURA) region
ILL modernisation programmes
A constant upgrade of facilities and instruments is the secret of our modern and highly optimised infrastructure. The completion of Endurance concludes two decades of continuous investment in ILL’s scientific instruments and capabilities.
