An estimated total of 52 million euros is required for the expansion, which will be named the ET-LFC (Einstein Telescope Low-Frequency Centre). The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science therefore intends to contribute approximately half of this figure, according to a letter sent to the House of Representatives today. A few weeks ago, the province of Limburg had already indicated its intention to invest 4 million euros.
The project aims to further establish Maastricht as the leading location for developing, bringing together and testing the technologies required for the future Einstein Telescope. This gigantic gravitational wave detector is to be constructed as a triangle of 10-kilometre-long arms, situated some 250 metres underground.
The ETpathfinder already serves as a small, above-ground ‘prototype’ of the detector. The plan is to link this to two full-scale towers – 12 metres high – filled with high-tech equipment, just like those that will eventually be installed underground. The aim is to ‘practice’ the construction process, to avoid any surprises later on at a depth of hundreds of metres.
These towers are intended to be housed in two new cleanroom buildings, adjacent to the ETpathfinder hall behind DUB30. Maastricht professor Stefan Hild, who is leading the project, hopes that construction can begin next year.
This does not, however, mean that the Einstein Telescope itself will actually be located in the Maastricht area. Sardinia and the eastern German state of Saxony are also still hoping to host the billion-euro project. The decision on the location is expected in 2027. The ETpathfinder, however, will remain in Maastricht in any case.