LASERLAB-EUROPE AISBL ZOOM diplomacy, and fostering closer collaboration and synergies with other European and international networks.
A further core objective of Lasers4EU is the development of the next generation of laser scientists. The project implements comprehensive training activities designed to equip researchers with essential skills, paying particular attention to scientists from emerging research fields and regions with developing scientific communities. In doing so, Lasers4EU supports a more inclusive, connected, and dynamic future for laser science in Europe.
Building a User community: Access, Training, Outreach and cross-facility activities
Now firmly in its operational phase, Lasers4EU has achieved significant milestones by streamlining the way researchers interact with Europe’ s most advanced laser facilities. Central to this success is a diversified framework comprising three distinct routes for transnational access. The single-instrument route supports curiosity-driven projects requiring a specific laser-based setup, whatever the scientific topics tackled( Fig. 2).
The industry-focused route provides companies and medical centres with the advanced instrumentation and expertise necessary to develop or improve tools and products, while the multi-instrument route, introduced in late 2025, enables parametric studies requiring repeated experiments within a single project or complex experimental campaigns that require the sequential use of multiple instruments through a single proposal. The introduction of this route represented a move towards a more diversified and user-friendly access offer for researchers, these latter being no longer constrained by the technical limits of a given laboratory and benefiting from a reduced administrative burden. This seamless integration of complementary techniques across different European APIs provides a comprehensive understanding of complex physical phenomena, drastically accelerating the pace of discovery in photonics.
Figure 1: the Lasers4EU network.
To facilitate the access schemes, the project launched the Access Search Tool, a platform that allows users to navigate the consortium’ s vast resources by matching their scientific interests with detailed laboratory profiles.
Recognising the complexity of operating such equipment, experimental setups, data acquisition systems, and analysis methods, Lasers4EU created a pre-project training scheme. This allows early-career researchers to visit host laboratories for up to one week prior to their official access period to gain
Figure 2: scientific topics, explored by the Laserlab-Europe access projects for the 2020-2024 period, aiming at deepening fundamental knowledge( blue), developing novel laser-based instruments and exploring societal applications.
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