SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory | Bold People. Visionary Science. Real Impact.

SLAC’s campus looking south with Interstate 280 in the distance.

The 3,200-megapixel LSST Camera is being tested inside the clean room at SLAC. The camera is the central component of the NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory.

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Sunrise timelapse of SSRL (Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource)

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Aerial view of SLAC’s campus. Stanford campus and Hoover tower can be seen in the distance.

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SLAC’s research yard in the foreground, with the LINAC stretching 2 miles to the west, and SLAC’s campus on the right.

Bold People
Visionary Science
Real Impact

We explore how the universe works at the biggest, smallest and fastest scales and invent powerful tools used by scientists around the globe. Our research helps solve real-world problems and advances the interests of the nation.

Our story Our people

Visionary Science

Explore our frontier research

X-ray & ultrafast science

Revealing nature’s fastest processes with X-rays, lasers and electrons

Physics of the universe

Studying the particles and forces that knit the cosmos together

Advanced accelerators

Building smaller, faster, more powerful accelerators for all

Science of life

Understanding the machinery of life at its most basic level

New technologies

Inventing new tools for science and society

Energy sciences

Finding clean, sustainable solutions for the world’s energy challenges

WHERE RESEARCH HAPPENS

Facilities & centers

At our large-scale facilities and specialized centers, scientists take advantage of powerful tools and unique expertise and collaborate with each other across a wide range of disciplines. Working together is what makes science tick.

Scientific facilities Joint institutes & centers

Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) at sunset — SLAC’s Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) provides extremely bright X-rays that scientists use in a wide range of research to probe matter on the scale of atoms and molecules. (*Olivier Bonin/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

The linac with Interstate 280 bridge and Stanford University in the distance. — The Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), the world’s first hard X-ray free-electron laser, allows researchers to make stop-action movies of chemistry in action and explore proteins for new pharmaceuticals. (*Olivier Bonin/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

FACET-II provides high-energy electron beams for researching revolutionary particle accelerator technologies that could make future accelerators 100 to 1,000 times smaller and a lot more capable. *(Peter Ginter/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

The Stanford-SLAC cryo-EM facility gives scientists unprecedented views of the inner workings of the cell and of technologies like batteries and solar cells. — The Stanford-SLAC CryoEM center gives scientists unprecedented views of the inner workings of the cell and of technologies like batteries and solar cells. *(Andy Freeberg/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

MEET OUR TEAMS

SLAC people

To achieve our ambitious goals and keep SLAC a great place to work, the lab needs a creative, diverse and united workforce – people with a wide variety of experiences, ideas, skills and backgrounds.

Members of the MEC-Upgrade Project tri-lab collaboration on the roof patio of LCLS. — Members of the MEC Upgrade Project tri-lab collaboration on the roof patio of LCLS. (*Olivier Bonin/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

SLAC employees participated in the first campus pride parade, 2022. — SLAC employees participated in the first onsite Pride Parade on June 29, 2022. (*Jacqueline Ramseyer Orrell/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

Anna Rosa Ziefuss, Chris Crissman, Dr. Siegfried Glenzer, Griffin Glenn, and Zhijiang Chen at LCLS's laser lab. — Anna Rosa Ziefuss, Chris Crissman, Dr. Siegfried Glenzer, Griffin Glenn, and Zhijiang Chen at the HEDS (High Energy Density Science) Sector 10 Laser Lab. (*Jacqueline Ramseyer Orrell/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

Jeney Wierman of SLAC’s Structural Molecular Biology team — Jeney Wierman stands in the control room of SSRL. She, along with other members of the Structural Molecular Biology team, supports three beamlines, 12-1, 12-2 and 9-2, which are dedicated to helping research from all over the world, creating 3D atomic-resolution shapes of various SARS-CoV-2 related proteins. (*Linda McCulloch/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)*

The TMO Control Room 1.1 located in the Near Experimental Hall at LCLS — From left, Project Scientist Dr. Razib Obaid, Staff Scientist Ming-Fu Lin, Associate Scientist Taran Driver and Doctoral Student Erik Isele work in the TMO Control Room 1.1, located in the Near Experimental Hall at LCLS. (*Jacqueline Ramseyer Orrell*/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)

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LATEST UPDATES

SLAC news center

News Brief

SLAC scientists say a well-known model of electron behavior is unlikely to fully explain high-temperature superconductivity in 2D cuprates.

Illustration of ultrastrong attraction between electrons in neighboring atoms within a 1D cuprate chain

News Feature

The long and continuing quest to understand dark energy has entered exciting new territory.

An illustration of a telescope with verdant trees on one side and a person raking leaves on the other.

News Brief

Researchers found a protein that's essential for an enterovirus to enter human cells. That could help the search for vaccines and treatments.

A cryo-EM image with blue blobs surrounded by purple lines representing cell nuclei and cell membranes, respectively.

News Brief

SLAC's deputy director for science and technology joins three others Stanford faculty as new fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of...

News Feature

The long and continuing quest to understand dark energy has entered exciting new territory.

News Brief

Researchers found a protein that's essential for an enterovirus to enter human cells. That could help the search for vaccines and treatments.

News Brief

SLAC's deputy director for science and technology joins three others Stanford faculty as new fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of...

News Feature

The winning teams from Fusion Academy and Joaquin Miller Middle School will continue on to nationals.

A high school student smiles at the camera while surrounded by others.

News Brief

Using an advanced technique at SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source, researchers make surprising discoveries.

News Brief

Nickel dopants could improve sustainable production of ethylene oxide, a chemical widely used in industrial manufacturing.

An illustration of purple balls (oxygen) gather near a nickel atom embedded in a sheet of silver.

News archive Media mentions Media resources

SLAC EVENTS

What’s happening

Upcoming Event

At CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC), protons collide at nearly the speed of light, unleashing a particle party that might reveal secrets beyond our...

May 08

SLAC is a vibrant community of diverse perspectives and expertise, all working together to solve some of the most pressing challenges of our times."
John Sarrao Lab Director