On 12 February, Professor Helmut Schorber, Director General of the European Spallation Source (ESS) multidisciplinary research centre of the European Research Infrastructure Consortium, visited RTU to learn about the scientific work of Riga Technical University (RTU) and to identify possible opportunities for cooperation.
He came to Latvia to meet with representatives of national scientific institutions and decision-makers, to present the opportunities offered by the ESS, to discuss the results of existing cooperation and to identify possible future opportunities. RTU collaborates with the ESS in the European Nuclear Research Centre (CERN) project I.FAST, where scientists from the Institute of Particle Physics and Accelerator Technologies of the Faculty of Science and Technology (FST) work and one of the activities is the development of machine learning methods for accelerator technologies. RTU scientists have also worked in the ESS as part of this project.
During a tour of the university's laboratories organised by the Institute of Particle Physics and Accelerator Technology of the RTU FNST, H.Schorber saw the work of robotics engineers from the Faculty of Computer Science, Information Technology and Energy (FCSITE), looking at the robotic systems that have already been developed, the devices that the scientists are working with, and the work of the students. In the Biopolymers Laboratory of the Natural Sciences and Technology Faculty, the ESS Director-General had the opportunity to see samples of biodegradable materials already developed by the Faculty's scientists, as well as the laboratory's infrastructure.
In the laboratory of the Institute of Materials and Surface Technologies of the FNST, the guest learned about the latest research of the scientists of this unit, including the identification during the research process of a way to produce hydrogen in a highly efficient and safe way for use in energy management.
During a tour of the FCSITE high range of motion robotic simulator, the guest was shown a variety of simulation programmes that simulate both aircraft driving and bobsledding, and are used not only for research but also for purely practical purposes. In the FCSITE Fibre Optics Transmission Systems Laboratory, which is involved in microchip research, the professor had the opportunity to see the world records that RTU scientists have achieved in researching how data could be transmitted as quickly and reliably as possible with smaller devices, using less energy and less heat.
The visit of the ESS Director General ended with presentations and a discussion with representatives of the RTU Institute of Particle Physics and Accelerator Technologies, the Institute of Solid State Physics of the University of Latvia, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis, the Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, and the University of Tartu.
