Chemistry & Catalysis

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March 24, 2020
News Feature
Solving the mysteries of a Trojan-horse mosquito toxin
An LCLS imaging technique reveals how a mosquito-borne bacterium deploys a toxin to kill mosquito larvae. Scientists hope to harness it to fight disease.
A photograph of mosquito larvae.
February 21, 2020
News Brief
Researchers identify new culprit for Minamata mercury poisoning tragedy
The 1950s and ‘60s poisoning event was long attributed to methylmercury, but studies at SLAC suggest a different compound was to blame. The findings could reshape toxicologists’ understanding of disease related to mercury poisoning.
Illustration of toxic waste being dumped from a pipe, a molecule, and a map showing the location of Minamata, Japan.
February 12, 2020
News Feature
Researchers show how electric fields affect a molecular twist within light-sensitive proteins
A better understanding of this phenomenon, which is crucial to many processes that occur in biological systems and materials, could enable researchers to develop light-sensitive proteins for areas such as biological imaging and optogenetics.
photoexcitation
February 6, 2020
News Brief
Internal
How iron carbenes store energy from sunlight – and why they aren’t better at it
These inexpensive photosensitizers could make solar power and chemical manufacturing more efficient. Experiments at SLAC offer insight into how they work.
Illustration of carbene reaction pathways
January 30, 2020
News Feature
Rust offers a cheap way to filter arsenic-poisoned water
In regions that lack the resources to treat the contaminated water, it can lead to disease, cancer, and even death.
Electrode tank
January 9, 2020
News Feature
Scientists observe ultrafast birth of free radicals in water
What they learned could lead to a better understanding of how ionizing radiation can damage material systems, including cells.
Radiolysis
December 16, 2019
News Brief
Researchers reveal how enzyme motions catalyze reactions
What they learned could lead to a better understanding of how antibiotics are broken down in the body, potentially leading to the development of more effective drugs.
December 4, 2019
News Feature
Q&A: Scientists use X-rays to crack the secrets of shale, a keystone of one of the nation’s fastest growing energy sources
A better understanding of these materials and how they store and transport oil and gas could one day enable more efficient fossil fuel production.
Aromatic carbon
December 2, 2019
Press Release
SLAC scientists invent a way to see attosecond electron motions with an X-ray laser
Called XLEAP, the new method will provide sharp views of electrons in chemical processes that take place in billionths of a billionth of a second and drive crucial aspects of life.
XLEAP
October 21, 2019
News Feature
A day in the life of an extreme matter scientist
Chemist Ben Ofori-Okai investigates what happens to matter under extreme conditions at microscopic scales to better understand its behavior at massive scales, such as what happens in the Earth’s core.
Ben Ofori-Okai

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