The University of Vienna is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and one of the largest in Central Europe with currently about 94,000 students enrolled in 174 degree programmes.
The Faculty of Physics focuses on fundamental research with an open eye for and competencies in applications, innovations and physics education. The Isotope Physics Research group operates the Vienna Environmental Research Accelerator (VERA), established in 1996. Based on a 3 MV tandem accelerator, it was one of the first accelerators especially dedicated and designed for universal Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) across the nuclear chart, and was continuously extended to reach new demands.
VERA can measure all standard AMS isotopes (10Be, 14C, 26Al, 36Cl, 41Ca, 129I), and has an outstanding reputation for the development and improvement of AMS methods and methodologies. The system is especially well-suited for the determination of actinides (236U, 233U, Np, Pu, Am). AMS measurements on the complete set of established isotopes are performed for many national and international partners with a recent emphasis on actinides.
The recently commissioned ILIAMS (Ion-Laser Interaction Mass Spectrometry) beamline extends the scope of AMS applications beyond the established isotopes.
While a minor fraction of the measurements is carried out on a commercial basis (mainly radiocarbon dating), most samples originate from collaborative research projects. About 5-10% of the regular working hours are presently used for student training. Research at VERA contributes to the faculty research area “Physics and the Environment”.
UW’s main areas of competence:
- special expertise in the fields of Earth and environmental research, cosmochemistry, nuclear, and astrophysics applications
Role in RADIATE:
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- deliver 1500 hours of transnational access to users
- contribute to joint research activities:
work package leader: “Beams and Sources”
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