What is the FSRUO ?

We coordinate the Finnish activities that use synchrotron and free-electron-laser light and related tools. Please be in contact with us if you would like to become a new user from within Finland of the corresponding facilities, since we know the best national and international experts for solving your problem. Finland does not have a national synchrotron nor free-electron laser light source, but we use actively the available international laboratories that offer their facilities for our use.   

Key facts about FSRUO:

• A non-profit organisation that coordinates and promotes Finnish activities to use synchrotron light sources and free-electron lasers.
• Promotes and represents interdisciplinary basic and applied scientific research that use large-scale light sources.
• Provides a forum for information exchange and collaboration between light sources, researchers affiliated with Finnish institutions, and companies who can benefit from the use of large-scale light sources.
• Can apply for and collect funding for organising meetings, workshops, courses, invited visits of lecturers and experts, and for facilitating synchrotron related infrastructure development and data collection.
• Can act as the coordinator in the interactions of our national users, international light sources, Finnish government, and funding agencies when considering large-scale infrastructure and research strategies.
• The Board of FSRUO appoints a national representative to corresponding international bodies.
• Was founded in Helsinki on Nov. 12th, 2009 by members from the Universities of Helsinki, Oulu, Turku and the Tampere University of Technology.

We invite all researchers in Finland whose work is related to synchrotron radiation or who consider its use in future to join FSRUO. The membership is free of charge.

Why?

Solving the societal challenges multidisciplinarily

Photon science enables us to tackle many current societal challenges – be it health and wellbeing, new paths for secure, clean and efficient energy, environmental issues, resource efficiency, and raw materials.

From the beginning, X-rays were used for medical science and as a common diagnostic technique. Photon science has made accessible the structure of simple and complex crystals, which has laid the foundation for many technical, medical and pharmaceutical applications. Photon science also helped us study catalytic processes, understand the mechanism of energy transfer in solar cells, unravel the structure of superconductors, and detect trace elements.

Without photon science, we would still theorize about the workings of genetics, but since the days of James Watson and Francis Crick we have known the exact shape of the molecules containing our genetic code. In recent decades, photon science helped us to decipher the structure of more and more molecules.

Ever better light sources allow ever higher temporal and spatial resolution. The scientists’ dream of molecular movies is in reach.

Photon science sheds light on the small pieces of bigger and more complex systems.

You don’t use synchrotron light to directly study a whole brain, a photovoltaic cell, or an airplane engine. However, to gain control over the clockwork, you need to better understand the workings of the gear wheels.

Source: European Synchrotron Radiation User Organisation manifesto

For press

The Finnish Synchrotron Radiation Users Organisation (FSRUO, suom. Suomen Synkrotronisäteilyn Käyttäjien Yhdistys ry) is a nonprofit association that was formed in Helsinki on Nov. 12th, 2009 by the founding members from the Universities of Helsinki, Oulu, Turku and the Tampere University of Technology. FSRUO is a non-profit organisation with the main purpose of promoting and representing interdisciplinary basic and applied scientific research using synchrotron radiation and free electron lasers. FSRUO provides a forum for information exchange and collaboration between researchers affiliated with Finnish institutions and companies, whose work is related to the use of synchrotron radiation. FSRUO can apply for and collect funding for organising meetings, workshops, courses, invited visits of lecturers and experts, and for facilitating synchrotron related infrastructure development and data collection. If necessary, FSRUO acts as the coordinating body in the interactions with Finnish government and funding agencies when considering large-scale infrastructure and research strategies. The Board of FSRUO appoints a national representative to corresponding international bodies. We invite all researchers in Finland whose work is related to synchrotron radiation or who consider its use in future to join FSRUO.