The LEP Pre-Injector (LPI) provides electron and positron beams at 500 MeV. In 1988, it was used for the first time to produce single electrons at 180 MeV in order to calibrate the L3 detector. Since this first experiment a dedicated irradiation area has been built downstream of the linac. This facility uses electron beams with an energy range adjustable from 180 MeV to 700 MeV with intensity, pul se duration and repetition rate, which can be varied within wide limits. Some LEP detectors, and almost all future LHC (Large Hadron Collider) detectors, have already used this facility intensively. W hen the LPI accumulator works at 308 MeV, the critical energy of the synchrotron light radiated in the bending magnets is 45 eV. It corresponds to the synchrotron radiation which will be produced by 7 TeV protons in the LHC. To study the crucial issue of desorption in the LHC vacuum chamber a first synchrotron light line, at room temperature, has been installed followed by a second one for cryogeni c temperatures. This paper reviews the experiments that have been done, the beam characteristics for these facilities and the possible evolutions in the near future
