Multidisciplinary research and applications of muon sources

The muon is one of the fundamental particles in the Standard Model of particle physics. As they are easy to obtain and have very special properties, they are often used as a probe to serve research from particle physics to a multidisciplinary platform based on the so-called μSR (Muon Spin Resonance, Rotation and Relaxation) techniques, to applications based on muon beam techniques. High-performance muon sources are thus important experimental platforms for comprehensive scientific research. This article presents an overview of the basic properties of the muon, the production of muon beams, their main application fields, the history and status of the international muon sources, and in particular the development potential of the muon facilities and muon science in China. The construction of the Experimental Muon Source at China Spallation Neutron Source which will be completed in the next few years will certainly usher in a great opportunity for the development of muon science in China.