Materials Science
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SLAC makes ‘electron camera,’ a world-class tool for ultrafast science, available to scientists worldwide
Combined with the lab’s LCLS X-ray laser, it’ll provide unprecedented atomic views of some of nature’s speediest processes.
First snapshots of trapped CO2 molecules shed new light on carbon capture
A new twist on cryo-EM imaging reveals what’s going on inside MOFs, highly porous nanoparticles with big potential for storing fuel, separating gases and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
A quick liquid flip helps explain how morphing materials store information
Experiments at SLAC’s X-ray laser reveal in atomic detail how two distinct liquid phases in these materials enable fast switching between glassy and crystalline states that represent 0s and 1s in memory devices.
Researchers get most comprehensive view yet of lithium-ion battery electrode damage
What they learned could help manufacturers design more reliable and longer-lasting batteries for smartphones and cars.
In brief: Radiation damage lowers melting point of potential fusion reactor material
SLAC’s ‘electron camera’ films rapidly melting tungsten and reveals atomic-level material behavior that could impact the design of future reactors.
In brief: Record-shattering underwater sound
Researchers produced an underwater sound with an intensity that eclipses that of a rocket launch while investigating what happens when they blast tiny jets of water with X-ray laser pulses.
In brief: Probing battery hotspots for safer energy storage
A laser technique lets researchers see how potentially dangerous growths form in batteries.
10 ways SLAC’s X-ray laser has transformed science
In the decade since LCLS produced its first light, it has pushed boundaries in countless areas of discovery.
A new lens on materials under extreme conditions allows researchers to watch shock waves travel through silicon
Researchers used a unique approach to learn more about what happens to silicon under intense pressure.
A new way to watch atoms move in a single atomic sheet
X-ray laser snapshots give scientists a new tool for probing trillionths-of-a-second atomic motions in 2-D materials
