"We are very pleased today to witness the completion and operationalization of a research infrastructure of the world-leading Centre for Integrated Laser Advanced Technologies (CETAL) infrastructure to the highest level worldwide. The Institute hosts the most powerful laser in Europe, the second laser in the world capable of producing laser pulses of a petawat lasting 25 femtoseconds, "the Minister for Higher Education and Research, Mihnea Costoiu said.
According to him, the CETAL infrastructure is the result of a project funded entirely from the state budget with 72 million lei from the National R & D Program 2007-2013
"It is unique in Europe due to the latest technology range of equipment. It constitutes an essential step in the ELI-NP infrastructure, the most famous project which will include two lasers of 10 petawatts", the minister said.
He argued that with the inauguration of CETAL , new top research perspectives will be open, such as applications in physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, energy, materials science, ultra advanced production technologies that will have a significant impact on the Romanian economy.
"Even if we only mention the huge potential in the acceleration of particles for testing components used in the space industry, generating strong X rays for application in the industry or for the protonanotherapy used in medicine, a spectacular array of research possibilities are being made available through which the Romanian research will certainly cross the current barriers.
The new generation of researchers from Romania and the next generations will have the possibility to develop in the country research projects based on resources that so far were available only in laboratories from the US, Germany, Great Britain, South Koreea. CETAL will attract, it has already accomplished this, teams of researchers from abroad, including from among the Romanian scientists living abroad”, Costoiu added.
The event was attended by Prime Minister Victor Ponta, the President of the Romanian Academy, Acad. Ionel Valentin Vlad, the Minister of National Education, Remus Pricopie, the Defense Minister Mircea Dusa, the Secretary of State for Education Tudor Prisecaru.