The participants in front of the IST during the annual meeting. © A. Franco, IST, Lisbon
The PACRI (Plasma Accelerator systems for Compact Research Infrastructures) project held its first annual meeting at the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) in Lisbon, Portugal from 24th to 26th March.
With more than €10 million funding from the European Union and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, PACRI aims to revolutionize plasma accelerator technologies for next-generation research infrastructures such as EuPRAXIA and ELI-Beamlines. The consortium consists of 19 academic and 6 industrial partners. By achieving breakthroughs in high-repetition-rate plasma modules, advanced diagnostics control, high-efficient RF linear accelerator technologies, and high-power laser systems as some of the main focuses of the project, PACRI aims to reduce the size, cost, and environmental impact of novel accelerators, enabling their use in diverse applications such as medical imaging, materials diagnostics, and even compact colliders.
The Lisbon annual meeting brought together all partners, both in-person and online, to present and discuss progress made in their respective tasks within the project. On the first day of the meeting, Prof. Jorge Vieira welcomed all participants, including WP leaders and early career researchers from institutions across Europe. PACRI Coordinator Dr. Gerardo D’Auria then outlined the meeting agenda for the three-day program before Dr. Alessandro Zardini, the newly appointed PACRI Project Officer from the Research Executive Agency (REA), introduced himself and discussed the project’s strategic importance for Europe, underlining central project aims, and explaining how REA can support the project.
The technical sessions then featured WP leader presentations on progress updates covering dissemination and communication activities, theory and simulations, plasma structures, diagnostics and instrumentation, RF technology, and laser technology. These were followed by engaging discussions that identified opportunities for collaboration across work packages and clarified the next steps in coming months.
Impressions from the PACRI annual meeting. © A. Franco, IST & D. Ghosal, UoL
At the end of the second day, a guided walking tour through Lisbon’s charming historic districts complemented the diverse program. Participants enjoyed discovering the city’s architectural treasures and cultural landmarks before gathering for the consortium dinner.
Dr. D’Auria said: “It was wonderful to meet all project partners, and we are grateful to IST for being such an excellent host for this important meeting. We have seen very impressive progress across our scientific work packages. PACRI is now an established and highly visible brand, and we have ambitious plans for the future.”
The final day began with the PACRI General Assembly, covering governance and strategic planning. Looking ahead, the next annual meeting was scheduled for mid-February 2027, strategically timed to facilitate completion of the first periodic report. The group also discussed upcoming events such as a plasma accelerator showcase event in Brussels (23rd April, 2026), an Innovation for a Sustainable Tomorrow Symposium in Liverpool (10th July, 2026), and the EuPRAXIA annual meeting, conference on Elba in September 2026 and Trieste Next 2026, the 15th edition of the Scientific research festival.
Participants enjoying the guided city-walking tour at Rossio square. ©C. Blasetti, Elettra
For the Scientific Advisory Committee, Prof. Malka joined remotely, while Dr. Lukas Gruber attended in person and delivered the Committee’s feedback. He praised the substantial progress made by work package teams while emphasizing the importance of developing a holistic sustainability strategy for key technologies beyond the project’s duration.
The meeting wrapped up with laboratory tours at the University of Lisbon, giving participants insight into the host institution’s cutting-edge research facilities. Three focused satellite meetings ran concurrently on these days of the meeting: the EuPRAXIA-DN Steering Committee reviewed progress and plans for 2026, while the Laser and RF pillar groups held dedicated technical workshops.
The full agenda and more information can be found via this link.
