Chemistry & Catalysis
RSS Feed 
Scientists Get First Glimpse of a Chemical Bond Being Born
Scientists have used an X-ray laser at SLAC to get the first glimpse of the transition state where two atoms begin to form a weak bond on the way to becoming a molecule.
National Academy of Engineering Elects SUNCAT Director Jens Nørskov
Jens Nørskov, director of the SUNCAT Center for Interface Science and Catalysis at Stanford and SLAC, has been named a member of the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional distinctions for engineers.
5 Ways to Put Tiny Targets in Front of an X-ray Laser
Scientists have assembled an exotic toolbox for experiments that tap into the brightest X-rays on the planet.
SIMES Engineers Use Brilliant X-rays to Illuminate Catalysis, Revise Theories
Stanford and SLAC engineers observed electrons at work during catalytic reactions. Their findings challenge long-held theories about some catalysts, opening the door to new or improved renewable energy applications.
Agreement Gives Energy Storage Companies Easier Access to SLAC
More than a dozen energy-storage companies have streamlined access to research facilities and expertise at SLAC under a new cooperative R&D agreement with CalCharge.
Public Lecture Video - 'Quantum CSI: Profiling Molecules with X-rays'
In this lecture, SLAC’s Ryan Coffee explains how researchers are beginning to use pattern recognition and machine learning to study chemical reactions at the level of atoms and molecules with the LCLS X-ray laser.
SUNCAT Director Jens Nørskov Awarded 2015 Langmuir Prize
The SLAC and Stanford professor and SUNCAT director is being honored for groundbreaking work in catalysis, which promotes chemical reactions in thousands of industrial processes.
Research Pinpoints Role of 'Helper' Atoms in Oxygen Release
Experiments at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory solve a long-standing mystery in the role calcium atoms serve in a chemical reaction that releases oxygen into the air we breathe.
Study Sheds New Light on Why Batteries Go Bad
A comprehensive look at how tiny particles in a lithium ion battery electrode behave shows that rapid-charging the battery and using it to do high-power, rapidly draining work may not be as damaging as researchers had thought – and that the benefits of slow draining and charging may have been overestimated.
Stanford Engineers Help Describe Key Mechanism in Energy and Information Storage
By observing how hydrogen is absorbed into individual palladium nanocubes, Stanford materials scientists have detailed a key step in storing energy and information in nanomaterials.
