The first scientific experiment at the Siberian Circular Photon Source (SKIF) near Novosibirsk will be conducted no later than October 2026. As reported to Vladimir Putin by the head of the Ministry of Education and Science, Valery Falkov, the facility's readiness has reached 99.7%, and the first study will be the synthesis of a new type of polyethylene. The construction of the facility took six years, and due to the refusal of foreign suppliers, the equipment was created by Russian scientific groups.
SKIF operates as an X-ray level microscope, generating radiation that allows objects smaller than a nanometer to be examined. The facility is based on an electron gun and a linear accelerator powered by a klystron. Initially, this key element was planned to be purchased from Japan, but in the end, it was created by specialists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In total, within the project, 88 components of experimental equipment were manufactured in Russia for the first time – from power sources for electromagnets to specialized vacuum pumps and power cables produced at a factory in Podolsk. By 2035, 30 experimental stations will be deployed at SKIF, with the first seven launching this year.
According to Sergey Polozov, head of the Department of Electrophysical Installations at MEPhI, SKIF will receive class 4+ and become the brightest facility among its analogues – equipment of this level is available only in four countries. The radiation will be so precisely directed that it will allow studying atoms of the crystal lattice and synthesizing molecules for new drugs. Moreover, the synchrotron will be useful in restoration work for understanding the properties of historical materials.
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