The world's deepest and largest underground laboratory has opened in China (11 photos + 1 video)

Last week, the China Jinping Underground Laboratory, a 2,400-meter deep physical laboratory located in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan, began operating. It became the deepest and largest underground laboratory in the world.





Scientists believe the lab provides a "clean" space to search for an invisible substance known as dark matter. They say the greater depth helps block most of the cosmic rays that interfere with observations. This will allow unique physical experiments to be carried out in the laboratory.

The Deep Underground Ultra-Low Radiation Laboratory for Frontier Physics Experiments (DURF) is located beneath the Jinping Mountains in Sichuan Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture. The level of cosmic rays in the laboratory does not exceed 0.2 muons/(m²·day).

DURF, with a total volume of 330,000 cubic meters, is the second phase of the Jinping Underground Laboratory. The first phase of construction was completed in 2010, and the second began in December 2020, jointly with Tsinghua University and Yalong River Hydropower Development Company, Ltd.

DURF will become a world-class interdisciplinary center for deep underground scientific research, integrating multiple disciplines including particle physics, nuclear astrophysics and life sciences, and will promote the development of Chinese research in relevant cutting-edge fields.

The following experiments are currently being carried out in the laboratory:

China Dark Matter Experiment (CDEX), a germanium dark matter detector, and

PandaX, a particle and astrophysical xenon detector for dark matter (and neutronless double beta decay).



Jinping mountain range





Entrance to the laboratory



The premises of the Jinping laboratory inside



The premises of the Jinping laboratory inside



Part of a waterproof radon capture layer at a deep underground and ultra-low background radiation facility for frontier physics experiments (DURF)



Workers transporting a cylinder of argon gas at the Deep Underground and Ultra-Low Radiation Frontier Physics Experiments (DURF) facility



Giant liquid nitrogen cryostat



A researcher from Shanghai Jiao Tong University debugging experimental setups



Tsinghua University researcher using liquid nitrogen



Experimental setup PandaX-4T