European School HERCULES 2026 at SOLEIL
From March 16 to 20, 2026, 24 young scientists from around the world are being welcomed at Synchrotron SOLEIL for an intensive training week as part of the HERCULES European School (Higher European Research Course for Users of Large Experimental Systems).
Throughout the week, participants will take part in lectures, tutorials, and practical sessions, enabling them to discover advanced experimental approaches developed at large-scale research infrastructures.
The HERCULES program, one of Europe’s leading training courses for early-career researchers working with major scientific facilities, spans six weeks: five weeks at ESRF in Grenoble and one week hosted by one of the European partner institutions (ALBA, KIT, MAX IV, ESS, LINXS, and SOLEIL) participating in the 2026 edition.
This week outside Grenoble offers participants the opportunity to discover other large-scale research infrastructures, their experimental techniques, and expertise specific to each facility, further enriching the training provided at ESRF.
At SOLEIL, participants will explore synchrotron-based methods applied to condensed matter physicochemistry and soft matter biological systems, gaining a deeper understanding of cutting-edge analytical techniques.
Among the new features introduced this year at SOLEIL, two lectures will be delivered by physicists from the Accelerator Physics group, along with a presentation on the applications of cryo-transmission electron microscopy for imaging and diffraction.
Following the strong interest expressed by students in previous editions, the session on best practices in scientific project management and monitoring will also be renewed this year.
Two days of theoretical lectures and tutorials will be followed by two days of hands-on practical sessions on several beamlines (AILES, ODE, CASSIOPEE, SIXS, DIFFABS, SWING, ROCK, CRISTAL, PROXIMA-2A, DISCO, POLARIS, SMIS, and LUCIA).
The week will conclude with a half-day session dedicated to presentations of the data collected during the practical sessions and their analysis.
Events like this highlight the importance of European collaboration in training the next generation of scientists and strengthening the community of researchers working with large-scale experimental systems.
In advance, a big thank you to all the speakers, instructors, and staff members who will contribute to making this week a rich experience of learning and scientific exchange.