European XFEL has a new look
The 14 countries involved intend to sign the intergovernmental agreement for the foundation of the European XFEL GmbH in spring 2009. The ministries are already looking for a suitable date. Before long, the X-ray laser project will thus be standing on its own feet. This also implies that the general public will become increasingly aware of it – reason enough to already equip the project with an “outfit” of its own, which can then seamlessly evolve into the corporate design of the independent institution, the European XFEL GmbH.
The essentials of the new image have been decided on and will be used as of today. Letter paper, business cards – in short, all that belongs to the business stationery of an independent institution – will follow after the foundation of the European XFEL GmbH.
Name
The name of the facility must reflect the unique selling proposition that distinguishes it from other facilities of its kind. In the last years, however, “XFEL” has become a generic term for X-ray sources based on free-electron lasers and electron linear accelerators. This is why the European XFEL facility will now be called “European XFEL”, and the research institution “European XFEL GmbH”.
Logo
The upper part of the logo (concept and design: Dirk Rathje) illustrates the generation and use of the X-ray flashes. In the first part of the facility, electrons are brought to high energies using a linear accelerator. In long magnetic devices called undulators, they are then induced to generate flashes of X-rays. In the last part of the facility, symbolized by the orange square, scientists use the flashes to carry out their experiments. The ratio of the lengths of the two rectangles and the square is 5 : 2 : 1, which corresponds more or less to the ratio of the lengths of electron acceleration : light generation : light use.
Colours
The two colours that characterize the corporate design of the European XFEL remain unchanged: violet, as the smallest visible wavelength in the electromagnetic spectrum, and orange to symbolize the light flashes.
Presentations
The graphical templates for transparencies and posters – the two main forms how the European XFEL project is presented both within the scientific community and to the general public – were devised from these main elements of the corporate design in combination with the font Arial.
www.xfel.eu
The new web presence www.xfel.eu is provided in English and German. It presents the European XFEL project and the future European XFEL GmbH in five categories: Overview, Research, Construction, Company and Project. Another level offers special interest groups such as neighbours, journalists, the scientific community and project members (intranet) direct access to specific information. News, dates, documents, job offers and the media data bank featuring pictures and videos can be accessed directly from the homepage. The full-text search enables users to quickly find any specific information within www.xfel.eu.