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ABSTRACT
The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) was the first collaborative synchrotron radiation facility in Europe. This article chronicles and analyzes decisive events during ESRF’s foundation phase from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s and sheds light on the politics that mattered for its realization as a scientific collaboration in Europe. As part of a broader effort to chronicle the history of the ESRF, this article contributes to an enriched understanding of intergovernmental scientific cooperation in Europe in the second half of the twentieth century by drawing on so far unexplored material from the French National Archives and the German National Archive.
Acknowledgements
It is a pleasure to thank the members of the Leibniz Programme “Global Processes” at the University of Konstanz, the Division of Science, Technology and Environment at the Royal Institut of Technology, Stockholm, and Olof Hallonsten for encouragement and support during the work on this article. The comments from two anonymous reviewers also improved the article substantially.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
Notes
1. See for instance: Doing, Velvet Revolution; Hallonsten, ‘The Parasites’; Heinze, Hallonsten and Heinecke, ‘Periphery to Center I’; ‘Periphery to Center II’; Heinze, Hallonsten and Heinecke, ‘Turning the Ship’.
2. See for instance: Hallonsten, Big Science Transformed; Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Formation and Expansion’; Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Institutional Persistence’; Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Multidimensional and Multi-Level Renewal’; Westfall, ‘Institutional Persistence and the Material Transformation’.
3. Krige and Barth, ”Introduction”; Skolnikoff, The Elusive Transformation; Oreskes and Krige, Science and Technology.
4. Krige, ‘The Politics of European Scientific Collaboration,’ 897.
5. Judt, Postwar, 98–99; Middlemas, Orchestrating Europe, 323–24.
6. Middlemas, Orchestrating Europe, 324.
7. Judt, Postwar, 308.
8. Ibid., 292.
9. Rush, ‘US Neutron Facility Development’, 139–40.
10. Krige, American Hegemony, 38–9.
11. Middlemas, Orchestrating Europe, 329. For a historical overview on the United Kingdom’s situation in the immediate post-war period: Judt, Postwar, 159–60.
12. Judt, Postwar, 159.
13. Ibid., 292.
14. Ibid., 307–8, 526.
15. Kaiserfeld, ‘The ESS’, 26.
16. Bacon, Fifty Years of Neutron Diffraction, Chapter 4: ‘World-Wide Spread of Neutron Scattering: A Miscellany of Stories,’ 62–119; Rush, ‘US Neutron Facility Development’, 140–46.
17. The term parasitic means the unplanned use of accelerators for research with synchrotron radiation that were originally purpose-build machines for particle physics experiments. This can also refer to research with neutrons. See for instance: Hallonsten, ‘The Parasites’.
18. Hoddeson, Kolb, and Westfall, Fermilab, 63f.
19. Trischler, ‘Physics and Politics’; Ash, ‘Wissenschaften und Wissenschaftspolitik’.
20. See for instance: Ash, ‘Wissenschaften und Wissenschaftspolitik’; Weingart, ‘Verwissenschaftlichung der Gesellschaft’; Raphael, ‘Die Verwissenschaftlichung des Sozialen’; Weingart, ‘Scientific Expertise’.
21. Trischler, Physics and Politics, 10.
22. Krige, ‘The Politics of European Scientific Collaboration’, 914.
23. Heymann and Martin-Nielsen, ‘Introduction’; Westfall and Krige, ‘Post-War Physics’.
24. Trischler and Weinberger, ‘Engineering Europe’, 59.
25. Krige, American Hegemony, Chapter 3: The Place of CERN in U.S. Science and Foreign Policy, 57–73; Pierre Papon, ‘Intergovernmental Cooperation’, 36.
26. The creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1952 as well as the subsequent creation of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957 set the ground for European integration and today’s European Union (EU). The Merger Treaty in 1967 unified the commissions and councils of the three communities—EEC, Euratom and ECSC. The European Economic Community became one part of the European Communities. The Maastricht Treaty of 1992 superposed the framework of the European Union (EU) and it also renamed the EEC to EC (European Community). Although this treaty already replaced the use of the notion of EEC/EC for that of EU, it was only with the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009 that the EEC/EC formally ended, but legal personality was granted to the EU.
27. Tindemans, ‘Post-War Research’, 12–7.
28. Schipper and Schot, ‘Infrastructural Europeanism’, 252.
29. Krige, ‘The Politics of Collaboration’, 898.
30. Papon, ‘Intergovernmental Cooperation’, 39.
31. Elzinga and Jamison, ‘Changing Policy Agendas’; Elzinga, ‘Features of the Current Science Policy Regime’; Jamison, ‘Science and Technology.’ For studies backed by rich empirical material see: Krige, American Hegemony, pointing to the role of science and technology for the post-war reconstruction of the European continent; Kevles, ‘Big Science and Big Politics’ that investigates the stop of the US Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) project in the early 1990s and identifying this project on the one hand and the life of the Human Genome Project in the mid-1990s on the other hand as symbolic events for the new priority-setting in national and international science policy agendas; Westfall, ‘Institutional Persistence’, highlighting how the construction of Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source was driven by the need to adapt to changing political and economic contexts.
32. Patel, ‘Provincialising European Union’, 660.
33. This argument can be found in Krige, ‘The Politics of Collaboration’, 908, and in Pierre Papon, ‘Intergovernmental Cooperation’, 39.
34. Hallonsten, ‘Continuity and Change’, 304.
35. KPhysics and Politicsrige, ‘The Politics of Collaboration’, 906.
36. For the cases of ELDO and ESRO and the fair return policies see Krige, ‘The Politics of Collaboration’, 907.
37. Hallonsten, Big Science Transformed, 52–112; Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Formation and Expansion’, 843–6.
38. Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Formation and Expansion’, 845 and . The listing has a strong focus on the European and US context. The Spring-8 facility in Japan in mentioned due to its outstanding importance. However, many synchrotron radiation facilities were—of course—also established in other regions. For a comprehensive list, see: http://www.lightsources.org/regions. Among the smaller, soft x-rays/VUV facilities were: the Elettra synchrotron in Trieste, Italy and the ALS (Advanced Light Source) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the United States. Both opened to users in 1993. DELTA (Dortmund Electron Accelerator) at the University of Dortmund, Germany opened in 1995. The electron storage ring BESSY II in Berlin opened in 1998. MAX II in Lund, Sweden opened in 1997.
39. For references to the early use of synchrotron radiation in Italy and Germany see, European Science Foundation, ‘Synchrotron Radiation’, 13, 51–2.
40. Munro, ‘Synchrotron Radiation Research in the UK’.
41. Farge, ‘L’Élaboration du Projet ESRF’.
42. Hallonsten, ‘Growing Big Science’.
43. For developments in the United States, Japan and the Soviet Union see European Science Foundation, Synchrotron Radiation, 14; Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Formation and Expansion’, 843–6.
44. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation I’, 18.
45. European Science Foundation, Synchrotron Radiation, 5.
46. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation I’, 18–19, 22; Haensel, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation Facility’.
47. For this report see An Assessment of the National Need.
48. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation I’, 19.
49. European Science Foundation, ‘Synchrotron Radiation’.
50. Ibid, 9.
51. European Science Foundation, ‘The Feasibility Study’, 7.
52. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation I’, 20.
53. European Science Foundation, ‘The Feasibility Study’, 7, 62.
54. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation I’, 22.
55. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation II’, 24.
56. Ibid., 26.
57. Ibid.
58. Documents consulted at the French National Archives often refer to the term ‘SNS’ for Spallation Neutron Source whereas this name is widely unknown in the scholarly literature. As the SNS early became re-named to ISIS and opened in 1985 under this name, this article uses both names—SNS and ISIS—interchangeable.
59. Note sur la Concentration Tripartite Franco-Germano-Britannique en Matière de Grands Equipements (17 June 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3; Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
60. Lohrmann and Söding, Von schnellen Teilchen, 128–9.
61. Statusbericht HERA (24 November 1983), Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3; Lohrmann and Söding, <italic>Von</italic> schnellen Teilchen, 124–8.
62. Note sur la Concentration Tripartite Franco-Germano-Britannique en Matière de Grands Equipements (17 June 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
63. Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Equipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
64. Ibid.
65. Ibid.
66. Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983), Annex III: “Point de Vue Français Présenté à la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scénarios de Programmation des Très Grands Equipements de la Recherche Fondamentale“ (2 September 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
67. Note de Synthèse sur Trois T.G.E. Européens (28 February 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3.
68. Pestre, ‘Prehistory of the ILL,’ 142.
69. Atkinson, ‘Commentary on History’, 146.
70. Ibid., 146; Meadows, Big Science, 32.
71. See above 66. 3.
72. See above 69., 151.
73. Compte Rendu de l’Entretien entre Monsieur Chabbal, Président de la M.S.T. et Monsieur Atkinson, Directeur Scientifique au Science and Engineering Council (Grande-Bretagne) (1 March 1984) from the French Ministry for Research and Industry, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
74. See above 69., 151.
75. Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
76. See above 67. 3.
77. Note sur la Concentration Tripartite Franco-Germano-Britannique en Matière de Grands Equipements (17 June 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3, and Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983), Annex II: ‘UK Position on the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)’ (7 September 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
78. Pierre Papon, ‘La Politique Européenne’, §10.
79. Hallonsten and Heinze, ‘Formation and Expansion’, 843–6.
80. Farge, ‘L’Élaboration du Projet ESRF,’ §8.
81. Compte-Rendu de la Réunion Organisée le 24 Novembre 1982 À Daresbury sur la Collaboration Franco-Britannique en Matière de Rayonnement Synchrotron (30 November 1982) from the French Ministry for Research and Industry, Archives Nationales de France, No. 2000 0405 15; Vermerk, Betreff: ESRF / Frage von Herrn St vom 21.1.1983 hinsichtlich deutscher Beteiligung an ESRP (27 January 1983), Annex: ‘Zur Information des BMFT’ from the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
82. ”Je crois que nous avons eu raison d’aller directement à la troisième génération car nous avions la chance d’avoir DCI pour les rayons X, ce que la Grande-Bretagne n’avait pas. L’Allemagne a ensuite eu un anneau de stockage meilleur que DCI, que nous avons surclassé à notre tour avec l’ESRF”. Farge, ‘L’Élaboration du Projet ESRF’, §11.
83. See above 81. 158.
84. Loi n° 82–610 du 15 Juillet 1982 d’Orientation et de Programmation pour la Recherche et le Développement Technologique de la France; Pierre Papon, ‘La Politique Européenne’, §2; Vermerk, Betreff: ESRF / Frage von Herrn St vom 21.1.1983 hinsichtlich deutscher Beteiligung an ESRP (27 January 1983), Annex: ‘Zur Information des BMFT’ from the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
85. Note pour le Ministre (17 April 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1990 0594 23, and Place Projets de Grands Instruments Européens dans Programmation Financière Du CNRS (12 March 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3.
86. Note d’Etape sur les Très Grands Instruments Européens (TGIE) (13 March 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1994 0426 2.
87. Vermerk (4 October 1979) from the German Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
88. Auszug aus den Empfehlungen <italic>des</italic> Gutachterausschusses ‘Großprojekte in der Grundlagenforschung’ (February 1981), Bundesarchiv, B 196 146 158, and Vermerk, Betreff: ESRF (4 October 1979) from the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
89. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation II’, 22.
90. Ergebnisvermerk Treffen Bundesminister von Bülow mit dem französischen Forschungs- und Technologie Minister Chevènement am 3. März 1982, Großprojekte in der Grundlagenforschung, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
91. Auszug aus dem Protokoll der 5. Sitzung Des Gutachterausschusses ‘Synchrotronstrahlung’ (GA.NG.15) (1 October 1982), Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
92. ‘très en retrait.’ Compte-Rendu de l’Entretien entre MM FABIUS et Riesenhuber (Bonn – 7 Octobre) (10 October 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, 1992 0550 3.
93. Hallonsten, Small Science, 214.
94. “Die Bundesrepublik sollte ihre bisherige Zurückhaltung gegenüber der ESRF aufgeben, sich aktiv an den Studien für das Gerät beteiligen und jetzt einen deutschen Standort mit Nachdruck anbieten.“ Rembser, ‘Neue Großgeräte’, 117.
95. Deutscher Bundestag, “Wissenschaftliche Forschung an Neutronenquellen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland und geplanter Forschungsreaktor München II“ Antwort der Bundesregierung auf die Kleine Anfrage der Abgeordneten Wolf-Michael Catenhusen et al. (1 July 1992), Drucksache 12/2569.
96. “Zunächst einmal wird sich die Bundesrepublik aktiv an den abschließenden Projektarbeiten für die ESRF und am späteren Bau der Anlage beteiligen.“ Rembser, ‘Neue Großgeräte’, 118.
97. Grand Équipements Scientifiques (22 February 1984), Telex from the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3, and Note de Synthèse sur Trois T.G.E. Européens (28 February 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3.
98. Compte-Rendu de l’Entretien entre MM FABIUS et Riesenhuber (Bonn – 7 Octobre) (10 October 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3.
99. Hirschel, Prem and Madelung, Aeronautical Research in Germany, 402, 595; Papon, ‘European Scientific Cooperation,’ 68; van der Bliek, ETW, a European Resource.
100. See above 67. 3.
101. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation II’, 23.
102. Letter from the Secretary General of the ESF, John Goormaghtigh (September 1980) as quoted in ibid., 23.
103. Ibid.
104. Hallonsten, Small Science, 216–7.
105. Compte-Rendu de la Réunion Organisée le 24 Novembre 1982 à Daresbury sur la Collaboration Franco-Britannique en Matière de Rayonnement Synchrotron from the French Ministry for Research and Industry, Archives Nationales de France, No. 2000 0405 15.
106. Note sur la Concentration Tripartite Franco-Germano-Britannique en Matière de Grands Equipements (17 June 1983) from the Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3; Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983), Annex II: UK Position on the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)” (7 September 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.
107. Stadt Dortmund, ‘ESRF in Dortmund,’; European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF). Beschreibung des Standortes Homburg (Saar). Bericht einer Arbeitsgruppe der Universitäten Saarbrücken und Kaiserslautern (without date), Archives Nationales de France, No. 1992 0550 3; ESRF. Standort Homburg, Universitäten in Saarbrücken und Kaiserslautern/ Lieu d’Implantation: Homburg. Universités à Sarrebruck et Kaiserslautern/ Proposed Site: Homburg. Universities in Saarbrücken and Kaiserslautern (without date), Archives Nationales de France. No. 1992 0550 3.
108. Vermerk, Betreff: Treffen Riesenhuber – Curièn am 12. September (20 September 1984) from the German Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 157.
109. Farge, ‘L’Élaboration du Projet ESRF’, §34.
110. Witte, ‘History of the ESRF’, 14; Atkinson, ‘Commentary on History,’ 148.
111. See above 69., 148.
112. Witte, ‘History of the ESRF’, 14.
113. Minutes of the 8th Meeting of the Progress Committee Concerned with the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility held in Brussels on 5 December 1984, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 157.
114. Witte, ‘History of the ESRF’, 14.
115. Ibid.
116. Walgate ‘Wheeling and Dealing’, .
117. Co-locating the ESRF with CERN in Geneva also appeared as an attractive alternative from a political point of view as infrastructures could be shared and equipment could be re-used. But ‘many of the SR scientists had not enjoyed the symbiosis with the high energy physics community; they did not want to be in the shadow of the “big brother” again’. Schmied, ‘European Synchrotron Radiation II’, 24.
118. See above 29., 913.
119. Compte Rendu Unilatéral de <italic>la</italic> Seconde Réunion <italic>du</italic> Groupe Tripartite <italic>des</italic> Scenarios <italic>de</italic> Programmation <italic>des</italic> Très Grand Équipements <italic>de</italic> <italic>la</italic> Recherche Fondamentale (27. January 1984) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France, No. 1994 0426 2.
120. Vermerk, Betreff: ESRF / Frage von Herrn St vom 21.1.1983 hinsichtlich deutscher Beteiligung an ESRP (27 January 1983), Annex: “Zur Information des BMFT“ from the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology, Bundesarchiv, B 196 / 146 158.
121. Letter from Peter Brooke to Hubert Curien (March 1985), Archives Nationales de France, No. 1994 0426 10.
122. Table reproduced from: Procès-Verbal de la Réunion du 7 Septembre 1983 du Groupe Tripartite des Scenarios de Programmation des Très Grands Équipements de la Recherche Fondamentale (5 December 1983) from the French Ministry for Industry and Research, Archives Nationales de France No. 1992 0550 3.