Neutron scattering research in Europe is supported by a network of complementary infrastructures, comprising both large international facilities and national installations. This model has fostered a broad and varied scientific community across numerous research fields.

In France, access to neutrons has historically been reliant on facilities like the Orphée reactor and associated laboratories from CNRS and CEA. However, the shutdown of some national sources has diminished local capabilities and increased dependence on foreign infrastructures.

At the European level, major facilities such as the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) and spallation neutron sources play a central role by providing high-performance neutron beams. They attract a large international scientific community, but access to their instruments is highly competitive.

This landscape creates a balance between scientific excellence and strong demand for instrument access. National facilities remain essential for user training, preliminary tests, and routine experiments, while large infrastructures are dedicated to the most advanced studies.

In this context, new compact neutron sources such as ICONE (HiCANS) are emerging as a solution to strengthen scientific autonomy, maintain expertise, and complement existing major European infrastructures.