Taiwan talks up advances at particle accelerator event in Taipei

Taipei, June 2 (CNA) Taiwan has developed strong R&D capabilities in particle accelerators that have been innovatively applied to many fields, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) head Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said Monday at a conference in Taipei.

Speaking at the International Particle Accelerator Conference (IPAC'25), which Taiwan is hosting for the first time, Wu said particle accelerators were an indispensable cornerstone of modern scientific development.

In Taiwan, Wu said, accelerator technology has expanded into various innovative application fields such as medical diagnosis and therapies, drug development, and energy innovation, though he did not go into further details on the advances made.

But according to the National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center (NSRRC), a nonprofit research institute funded by the NSTC, IPAC'25 highlighted Taiwan's over 30 years of accumulated R&D strength in synchrotron radiation and accelerator technology.

Several medical institutions have already applied accelerator technology in proton and heavy ion cancer therapies, indicative of Taiwan's achievements in both scientific research and the commercial development of particle accelerators, the NSRRC said in a statement.

The NSRRC further noted that Taiwan is home to internationally significant large-scale particle accelerators, such as the "Taiwan Light Source" and the "Taiwan Photon Source," both operated by the center.

These facilities serve as powerful tools for cutting-edge fundamental research in fields like physics, chemistry, materials science, and biomedicine, while also contributing to precision medicine and semiconductors, it said.

Many of those technologies were on display at the show, with Taipei Veterans General Hospital, for instance, presenting a model of its Heavy Ion Therapy Center and explaining the types of tumors suitable for heavy ion treatment.

The IPAC is one of the largest and most influential international conferences in the field of particle accelerators. Since 2010, it has been hosted annually on a rotating basis among Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

IPAC'25 has attracted nearly 1,000 scholars and experts and more than 70 companies in the field of particle accelerators. The event will feature more than 80 keynote speeches and technical seminars as well as more than 1,000 poster presentations.

It is being held from June 1-6 at the Taipei International Convention Center.