Acceleated ion beams are the primary requisite for conducting certain kinds of basic research.This was realised ay back in 1960s.in 1964 Dr.Homi Bhabha constituted a national commitee to look into the need of accelerataors in the country.Though he committee's recommendation for  an accelerator in the   university sector came quickly,it took nearly two decade to finally kick centre was approved by Smt. Indira  Gandhi in october 1984.

Though there were initial hurdles, within a decade, the centre has become one of the best in the world. The centre offers a unique opportunity to the academic community for research in areas such as nuclear physics, atomic physics, material sciences, bio-sciences and several inter disciplinary fields. Every year, hundreds of researchers from different parts of the country come to the lush green campus of the Nuclear Science Center to conduct experiments. The primary objective of the centre is to provide front ranking research facilities using accelerated ions of almost all the elements of the periodic table.  The huge accelerator-tower is the heart of the centre. This contains a heavy ion accelerator which produces continuous beam of ions with energies  upto 250 MeV (Million electron volts). This is called Pelletron Accelerator. Ion beams, with energies above the Coulomb barrier (4-5 MeV/nucleon) are used for studying nuclear structure, reaction mechanisms etc. Low energy beams are used for conducting studies in radiation biology, atomic physics and the structure of materials. From the tower, the accelerated ion beam is directed to the Beam Hall. Here the beam can be sent into seven different beam lines for conducting various studies. The accelerator system provides just a tool, whereas the real action is taking place at the end of the beamlines where the experimental facilities are located. There are five major experimental facilities at the center. They are:

1. Gamma Detector Array (GDA)

This facility is used to study the nuclear structure. Nuclei are excited to high energies and rapidly spinning states using the accelerated ion beams and their decay modes provide scientists with stringent tests of models of nuclei.

2. Heavy Ion Reaction Analyser (HIRA)

This is one of the few such facilities available in the world. This is a powerful tool for production and study of exotic particles. This is also used as a source of radioactive ion beam which is the first of this kind in India.

3. Material Sciences Facility

The major attraction of this laboratory is the Scanning Tunnelling Microscope (STM), one of the most powerful microscopes in the world. Here the material structure is being studied and scientists at this laboratory are    besides she structure of elements.  a part from these basic research facilities the centre has a few research support laboratories as well. Here scientists are developing ion sources to be accelerated in the pelletron, and targets of various kinds, including those of rare isotopes of elements. The centre has a sophisticated data acquisition and control system (DACS) as well. In order to operate and maintain the accelerator, the centre has to develop capabilities in technologies like high vacuum, magnet design, high voltage analog, digital and RF electronics, cryogenics etc. This has resulted in some spin-offs. Technologies developed at the center have already been transferred to industrial houses for commercial applications. The technology for the fabrication of 500 watt RF amplifiers is the most recent one.  The construction of a superconducting Linac booster accelerator is progressing at the centre. The existing pelletron accelerator can deliver beams with energies above the Coulomb barrier upto a certain atomic number only. Much more interesting physics can be done, if this domain is extended to higher atomic numbers. On completion the LINAC booster accelerator will help do that. The modus operandi being followed for the LINAC is to make as many components indigenously as possible. The NSC staff is interacting with the local industries and educating them in advanced technologies so that the required level of precision and performance can be achieved. Fabrication of different sub-systems of the LINAC is nearing completion and within a couple of years the accelerator would be operational.  Advanced facilities are continually added to the existing infrastructure in order to upgrade laboratories. This is to help our scientists to conduct studies in some of the front ranking areas of physics, such as formation of heavy nuclei, high spin states of actinide, gamma decay of isomers and high temperature super-conductivity. The Nucelar Science Centre is just 12 years old. It has shown results in many areas, but much more is yet to come.

- P.M. Narayanan