Established 1950s | Website soreq.gov.il | |
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Research type Nuclear research centre Field of research Atomic Energy, Material Physics, Nano-Sciences, Electronics and Instrumentation, Reactor Engineering, Metallurgy Location Palmachim and Yavne, Israel Fields of research Materials physics, Instrumentation, Metallurgy | ||
Soreq nuclear research center top 5 facts
The Soreq Nuclear Research Center (Hebrew: המרכז למחקר גרעיני - שורק) is a research and development institute situated near the localities of Palmachim and Yavne in Israel. It operates under the auspices of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission (IAEC). The center conducts research in various physical sciences, particularly the development of many kinds of sensors, lasers, atmospheric research, non-destructive testing techniques, space environment, nuclear safety, medical diagnostics and nuclear medicine. It is also one of three facilities in Israel which produce various types of radiopharmacuticals for use by health care organizations throughout the country.
The institute houses a wide array of laboratories and research facilities including an AMF 5 MW pool-type light water nuclear reactor supplied in the late 1950s from the United States under the Atoms for Peace program, a 10 MeV proton cyclotron accelerator, and a continuous wave, 5-40 MeV, 0.04-5 mA proton and deuteron superconducting linear accelerator – the first phase of which was commissioned in 2013 (see also: SARAF – Soreq Applied Research Accelerator Facility).
Commissioned by the Israeli government in 1956, the reactor building was designed by American architect Philip Johnson. With its distinctive brutalist style, it has appeared on stamps and was one of Johnson's favorite buildings, though security precautions prevented him from visiting the completed structure while in Israel in 1966.
The Center is named after the nearby stream of Soreq.
The Center operates under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
