At the end of the T8 line in the EAST Area, a one-of-a-kind test facility can be found. It is called CHARM, a radiation test facility dedicated to testing of electronics and systems in well characterized mixed radiation fields. The facility can replicate a wide number of radiation environments of an accelerator complex, for example tunnel and shielded areas as well as experimental caverns.

The facility restarted during last October and it received the beam from PS. The beam hit for the first time the CHARM target on 4th October. The facility commissioning was carried out by the BE-CEM-EPR team, in charge of assessing that all the elements were fully functional, and that the dosimetry was consistent with the expected values. On 6th October the facility hosted the first users.

The run of this year consists of five operational weeks dedicated to the users. Six users from the ATS (TE-VSC, SY-EPC, SY-BI, SY-BMI, BE-CEM) and the RCS (CMS) sectors are scheduled, and overall, 15 systems` tests are going to take place. It was possible to host so many users thanks to the continuous upgrade of the facility, but in particular to the upgrades done during the LS2, such as the extension of the control room and the increase of cables available for the users.

The facility completed the proton run and dedicated two days days to the extraction of the ion beam. In doing that, the facility will be ready for the two weeks of the ion run taking place next year in the context of the CHIMERA project. CHARM will restart next year with already 13 users in the pipeline and there will be many more to come.