During the state visit of Czech President Petr Pavel to Lithuania, a new cooperation agreement was signed between Extreme Light Infrastructure ERIC (ELI) and Vilnius University. The signing ceremony was attended by the Presidents of both countries.
The agreement outlines Lithuania’s continued participation in ELI activities and foresees cooperation in research, innovation, and advanced technologies. It also confirms Lithuania’s commitment to long-term involvement in this international research infrastructure.
Lithuanian scientists and companies have been involved in ELI since the early stages of the infrastructure’s development. Lithuanian partners contributed during the preparatory phase and played an important role during the construction phase by developing and delivering key laser systems. OPCPA technology developed in Lithuania is used in major ELI laser systems, while Lithuanian companies have contributed to the development and supply of advanced laser technologies and optical components.
Lithuanian research groups are also active users of ELI facilities. They participate in the Excellence-based User Programme, where projects are selected based on scientific merit. Initially, Lithuanian research focused mainly on laser and optics topics, but in recent years it has expanded to include work on secondary radiation sources and applications in areas such as radiobiology, energy research, and laser-driven fusion.
During the visit, a high-level meeting was also held to discuss further cooperation. The meeting brought together representatives from the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, the Ministry of the Economy and Innovation, the Research Council of Lithuania, Innovation Agency Lithuania, Vilnius University, the Center for Physical Sciences and Technology (FTMC), the Lithuanian Laser Association, and ELI. Discussions focused on future directions of cooperation, industrial participation, and potential joint scientific and technological initiatives.
According to Roman Hvězda, Director of the ELI Beamlines Facility, Lithuania plays an important role in the partnership thanks to its strong scientific expertise and industrial capacity. He noted that the experience of Lithuanian specialists can contribute to the further development of ELI technologies and open additional opportunities for researchers, engineers, and companies on both sides.
What is ELI?
Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) is an international laser research infrastructure dedicated to experiments using ultra-high-power and ultrashort-pulse lasers. ELI facilities operate in several European research centres and provide scientists with the opportunity to conduct advanced experiments in physics, materials science, biology, medicine, and energy research.
Lithuania is one of the co-founders of this infrastructure. It is currently the only large-scale research infrastructure in which Lithuania participated as a founding partner.