The Jefferson Lab Eta Factory.

The Jefferson Lab Eta Factory (JEF) aims to collect $5\times10^7~\eta^{(')}$, with the GlueX setup and an upgraded Forward Calorimeter, using an incident photon beam of $8-12$~GeV on a liquid hydrogen

  target. This large data set will enable the study of symmetry violation in hadron decay dynamics, and the search for new physics. Among the key decay channels is the decay

  $\eta \rightarrow \gamma\gamma\pi^0$ decay, which is sensitive to higher order terms of chiral perturbation theory, and can be used as a probe of low-energy QCD.

  The $\eta^{(')}\rightarrow 3\gamma$ decay, which is C violating, can be used to constrain further C-violating and P-conserving new physics. Additionally, $\eta^{(')}$ decays will offer sensitive probes

  for new hypothetical GeV scale dark particles (dark photons-like, dark Higgs bosons-like, and axion-like particles). In this talk, I will present the physics objectives and status of the JEF

  experimental program.