Taiwan science organisations and ANSTO celebrating ten years of operation of an advanced instrument

A delegation of Taiwanese officials and ANSTO staff celebrated the 10^th anniversary of the operation of an advanced scientific instrument, a cold neutron triple axis spectrometer Sika on 4 September.

The Taiwanese dignitaries (who also joined the event online from Taiwan) included Dr. Chia-Hung Hsu Director, National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center (NSRRC) and Dr. Chen-Kang Su, Vice Minister of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) and Chairman of the NSRRC Board.

Representatives from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia, including Ambassador Yu-Tien Hsu; Prof. Ho Lin Executive Director of the Science & Technology and Shih-Chun Chung - Group leader of Neutron Group at NSRRC attended in person at ANSTO. All were welcomed by Dr Andrew Peele, Group Executive, Nuclear Science and Technology ANSTO.

“We proudly celebrate this milestone that marks a decade of collaboration between Australian and Taiwan and the scientific progress that has been made possible by the operation of the Sika instrument,” said Dr Peele.

“We hope the Sika project will continue to deepen Taiwan–Australia cooperation and welcome more international partners to join this collaborative endeavour. By sharing resources, exchanging knowledge, and conducting joint research, we can together explore the fundamental questions of science and contribute to global progress,” said Chairman Dr. Chen-Kang Su.

History

Following the termination of Taiwan’s Research Reactor II (TRR II) project in 2002, the NSTC initiated plans to develop advanced neutron experimental facilities through international collaboration to address the needs of Taiwanese researchers in neutron science. In 2005, facilitated by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Australia and the Australian Commerce and Industry Office, Taiwan and Australia signed a bilateral agreement. 

A team led by National Central University carried out the design and construction of Sika. The NSRRC assumed responsibility for operation and maintenance after the instrument was successfully commissioned and officially opened in 2013. Sika serves as a key platform for Taiwanese scientists conducting neutron scattering experiments. 

Sika delivers outstanding performance with an average availability of 99%, making it the most stable cold neutron triple-axis spectrometer in the Asia-Pacific region. According to NSRRC data, 234 experiments were performed with nearly 500 user visits in the past decade across fields such as semiconductors, green energy, polymer and biomedical materials. 

Taiwanese research teams using Sika have published their findings in top international journals, such as Energy & Environmental Science, Advanced Materials, Advanced Science,etc., demonstrating the indispensable role of Sika in materials science and fundamental physics.

According to the Taiwan-Australia bilateral agreement, Taiwanese researchers are also granted access to other neutron instruments operated by ANSTO. The second bilateral agreement<_https3a_ _www.ansto.gov.au2f_news2f_sika-operation-and-research-agreement-renewed="">, signed in 2020, further expanded collaboration to include equipment sharing, information exchange, researcher visits, and joint research, which evolved into a redefined model of collaboration.