What Inter University Accelerator Centre does

Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC) is an autonomous body of the University Grants Commission (UGC), established in October 1984 under Section 12(ccc) of the UGC Act, 1956, and located in New Delhi, India. Originally set up as the Nuclear Science Centre and renamed IUAC in 2016, it is India's premier national laboratory for providing university researchers with access to heavy-ion accelerator infrastructure that is beyond the financial reach of any single university.

The facility's core stack consists of a 15UD/16MV Pelletron tandem accelerator operational since July 1991, a Niobium Quarter Wave Resonator-based Superconducting Linear Accelerator (SC-LINAC) developed jointly with Argonne National Laboratory (USA), a High Current Injector (HCI) with a superconducting ECR ion source (PKDELIS) feeding an RFQ and DTL chain, and a Free Electron Laser (Delhi Light Source) under construction with KEK, Japan. Supporting capabilities include Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry, Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (the first AMS facility in India, for radiocarbon dating and 10Be/26Al detection), low-energy tabletop ion accelerators, negative and positive ion beam facilities, and specialised detector systems such as HIRA (first in Asia), HYRA, the Indian National Gamma Array (INGA), and the National Array of Neutron Detectors (NAND). High-performance computing is delivered through the KALKI (6.5 teraflops) and K2 (62 teraflops) MPI clusters.

IUAC's business model is that of a publicly funded shared-infrastructure facility. It does not sell beam time; researchers from Indian universities, IITs, and national research institutions submit proposals through an online portal for review by the Accelerator User Committee (AUC), and approved proposals receive allocated beam time in Beam Halls I and II. Revenue is derived from UGC and Ministry of Education grants rather than user fees, and the centre supplements this with structured outreach — PhD training, M.Sc. orientation, summer training, and B.Tech/M.Tech internship programmes — that functions as a long-term user-acquisition and workforce-development channel.

Name

Inter University Accelerator Centre

Legal name

Inter-University Accelerator Centre

Website

https://iuac.res.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC) is a UGC autonomous body in New Delhi that provides Indian university researchers with shared access to heavy-ion accelerator facilities, including a 15UD Pelletron, superconducting LINAC, and detector arrays, funded through government grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New Delhi

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: IUAC is an autonomous body of the University Grants Commission (UGC), established under section 12(ccc) of the UGC Act, 1956. It receives government funding for operations and infrastructure.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

IUAC provides accelerator-based research infrastructure and beam time to Indian universities, centered on a 15UD/16MV Pelletron tandem accelerator boosted by a Superconducting Linear Accelerator (SC-LINAC) and a High Current Injector (HCI). It supports experimental programmes in nuclear physics, materials science, radiation biology, atomic physics, health physics, and accelerator mass spectrometry through dedicated ion beam facilities, unique detector arrays (HIRA, HYRA, NAND, INGA, GDA), and in-house supercomputing (KALKI and K2). It also delivers structured training through PhD, M.Sc. orientation, summer training, and B.Tech/M.Tech internship programmes.

Product overview

IUAC operates as a research accelerator center providing accelerator-based research facilities to Indian universities. The core infrastructure consists of a 15UD/16MV Pelletron tandem accelerator and a Superconducting Linear Accelerator (SC-LINAC) booster. Supporting systems include Negative and Positive Ion Beam Facilities, Pelletron Accelerator RBS-AMS Systems, Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS), Tabletop Ion Accelerators, High Current Injector (HCI), and the under-construction Free Electron Laser (Delhi Light Source). Research capabilities are enhanced by specialized detector systems: Heavy Ion Reaction Analyzer (HIRA), HYbrid Recoil mass Analyzer (HYRA), National Array of Neutron Detectors (NAND), Indian National Gamma Array (INGA), and Gamma Detector Array (GDA). Computing infrastructure includes KALKI (6.5 teraflops) and K2 (62 teraflops) supercomputing clusters. Educational outreach encompasses PhD Training, M.Sc Orientation, Summer Training, and B.Tech/M.Tech Internship programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pelletron Tandem Accelerator 15UD/16MV Pelletron tandem accelerator capable of operating up to 15 MV terminal potential, producing DC and pulsed beams of various elements for university-based nuclear physics, materials science, and atomic physics research. Operational since July 1991 with compressed geometry accelerator tubes and offset/matching quadrupoles for charge state selection.
• Superconducting Linear Accelerator (SC-LINAC)
• High Current Injector (HCI) Superconducting Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source (PKDELIS) combined with Radio Frequency Quadrupole and Drift Tube LINAC modules to accelerate heavy ions with A/q ≤ 6, designed to overcome low current limitations of the Pelletron Accelerator and enable low cross-section nuclear reaction studies.
• Pelletron Accelerator RBS-AMS Systems (PARAS) Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry facility with 1.7 MV Pelletron accelerator equipped with an Alphatross ion source for producing negatively charged He and H ions, and a 4-axis goniometer for elemental concentration analysis in materials.
• Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS)
• Negative Ion Beam Facilities Ion implanter accelerator providing negative ion beams with variable low energies (30 to 200 keV) and current intensities (few nA to few μA) for materials science research through ion-solid interaction. Components developed in-house including high voltage platforms and electrostatic quadrupole triplets.
• Positive Ion Beam Facilities Positive ion accelerator using an Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source mounted on a high voltage deck, providing multiple charged positive ion beams with tunable energy (~50 keV to about 3 MeV) for Atomic, Molecular and Materials Sciences experiments.
• Tabletop Ion Accelerators In-house developed 60 kV and 30 kV tabletop ion accelerators designed to introduce young faculty and students to Physical Sciences research and education at university and college level.
• Free Electron Laser (Delhi Light Source)
• KALKI Supercomputing Cluster
• K2 Supercomputing Cluster
• Heavy Ion Reaction Analyzer (HIRA)
• HYbrid Recoil mass Analyzer (HYRA)
• National Array of Neutron Detectors (NAND)
• Indian National Gamma Array (INGA)
• Gamma Detector Array (GDA)
• PhD Training Programme
• M.Sc. Orientation Programme
• Summer Training Programme
• B.Tech/M.Tech Internship Programme

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), USAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint collaboration for design and fabrication of Niobium Quarter Wave Resonator (QWR) for superconducting LINAC booster. Initial resonators for first linac module were fabricated at ANL, establishing the core accelerator technology.
• KEK, JapancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for development of laser system for the Delhi Light Source (DLS) Free Electron Laser facility under construction at IUAC.
• IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIUAC intends to participate under Coordinated Research Project (CRP) for facilitating access to 'guests' from all IAEA Member States.
• IIT-KanpurminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint University-IUAC Ion Beam Centre (IBC) being identified among upcoming facilities at focused ion beam facility with 1.7 MV High Current Tandem Accelerator.
• University of AllahabadminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHigh-Fluence Ion Beam Facility at the university; Joint University-IUAC Ion Beam Centre (IBC) being identified.
• Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, BilaspurminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint University-IUAC Ion Beam Centre (IBC) being identified at National Centre for Accelerator-Based Research.
• Mumbai University Accelerator Centre (MUAC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint University-IUAC Ion Beam Centre (IBC) being identified for potential network of accelerator facilities.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• GANIL (Grand Accélérateur National d'Ions Lourds): French national heavy-ion accelerator facility offering comparable heavy-ion beams, recoil separators, and nuclear physics research programs. Directly comparable in mission and user community.
• TRIUMF: Canada's particle accelerator centre, the country's leading nuclear and particle physics laboratory. Comparable as a national accelerator facility serving university researchers with broad science mandate.
• Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC): India's premier accelerator-based nuclear physics research centre under DAE, operating cyclotrons in Kolkata. Most direct peer as a national heavy-ion accelerator facility serving Indian researchers with overlapping nuclear physics mission.
• Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics: Kolkata-based national research institute operating a cyclotron for nuclear physics research. Comparable as a peer Indian accelerator facility focused on nuclear and accelerator-based sciences.
• GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung: Germany's national laboratory for heavy ion research with synchrotron and storage ring capabilities. Directly comparable as a heavy-ion accelerator facility with similar nuclear physics research scope.

Broad incumbents

• Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR): Mumbai-based national fundamental research institute with particle/nuclear physics programs and accelerator facilities. Overlaps with IUAC in serving Indian physics researchers and providing research infrastructure.
• KEK (High Energy Accelerator Research Organization): Japan's national accelerator research organization. Collaborating partner for the DLS Free Electron Laser, and a broader peer as an accelerator physics laboratory with international user programs.
• Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC): India's premier nuclear research centre under DAE with broader mandate covering reactor technology, isotope production, and accelerator research. Comparable as a national nuclear science institution, though with a much wider portfolio.
• Argonne National Laboratory (ANL): US Department of Energy national laboratory with ATLAS heavy-ion accelerator and broader science portfolio. IUAC's core SC-LINAC technology was co-developed with ANL, making it both a partner and a much larger incumbent peer.

Emerging players

• Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB): Newest US national user facility for rare isotope research, operational since 2022 at Michigan State University. Emerging player offering higher beam intensities that may compete for international user demand in the heavy-ion nuclear physics community IUAC serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/iuac_official
• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=69QvdUssk0s
• Facebookfacebook.com/iuacdelhi
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inter-university-accelerator-centre

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Inter University Accelerator Centre