Status of the new fragment separator ACCULINNA-2 and first experiments

The start of operation of a new separator ACCULINNA-2 makes an important upgrade for the Radioactive-Ion Beam (RIB) research done at the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions (FLNR, JINR). Test results indicate that the separator meets the project specifications. Intensities obtained for the 6,8He, 9,11Li, 12Be RIBs are 15 times higher in comparison with the results achieved at the old separator ACCULINNA. An overview of the design, construction and commissioning studies of the ACCULINNA-2 separator is presented. The separator will be equipped with some key facilities: a cryogenic tritium target, zero degree spectrometer following the physical target bombarded by the RIBs, and with a neutron detector array, and the Time Projection Chamber (TPC). This opens a wide range of experimental possibilities. Overview is presented on the two first experiments devoted to the study of d + 6He elastic scattering and search for a 7H low-lying resonance state populated in the 2H(8He,3He)7H reaction.