This groundbreaking development in high-energy physics introduces a new kind of charged particle accelerator. The laureate has successfully developed a compact and intensive source of neutrons, which was previously considered technically unfeasible. The creation of this source involved inventing a compact proton accelerator and a specifically designed lithium target.
This pioneering neutron source opens up new possibilities for a wide range of scientific experiments. These include studying the parameters of nuclear reactions, measuring material degradation under neutron radiation, conducting neutron diffraction in crystal structures, and developing a collider based on colliding neutron beams. Moreover, this source has significantly advanced promising cancer treatment methods such as boron neutron capture therapy and its analogues, including lithium neutron capture therapy, bringing them to a new level of effectiveness
The VYZOV Prize is awarded for the development of a compact accelerator neutron source suitable for a wide range of research applications, including neutron capture therapy.
Sergey Taskaev was born on December 19, 1959. He successfully defended his doctoral thesis titled “Accelerator Source of Epithermal Neutrons” in 2007 at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Currently, he holds the title of Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and serves as Chief Researcher at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics. Additionally, he is the Head of the Laboratory of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy at Novosibirsk State University and President of the FORA Foundation for the Development of Neutron Capture Therapy. In 2024, he became finalist of the “Russia — Land of Opportunities” National Award.
