SLAC topics

Chemistry and catalysis RSS feed

Catalysts are the unsung heroes of chemistry, accelerating reactions used to make fertilizers, fuels and consumer products. Our work aims to make catalysts more efficient and reduce the use of fossil fuels.

Energy sciences

Depiction of four techniques used to study a single-atom catalyst.

News Feature

Created by scientists from Stanford, SLAC and Denmark, the new nickel-gallium catalyst converts carbon dioxide emissions into an important industrial chemical and potential fuel

Jens Norskov
News Feature

A 2-ton instrument the size of a compact car, now available at SLAC's X-ray laser, makes it possible to capture more detailed images of...

Photo - A view of the LAMP instrument at SLAC's Linac Coherent Light Source X-ray laser. (SLAC)
News Feature

A discovery by SLAC researchers into how chemical reactions take place on a platinum catalyst could lead to more efficient, less costly fuel cells.

Photo – SLAC researchers Hernan Sanchez Casalongue (left) and Hirohito Ogasawara
Press Release

A study shows for the first time that X-ray lasers can be used to generate a complete 3-D model of a protein without any...

See caption
Press Release

A single layer of tin atoms could be the world’s first material to conduct electricity with 100 percent efficiency at the temperatures that computer...

Photo - tin can and piece of scrap tin sitting on a periodic table of elements with tin "Sn" highlighted
Press Release

The ultrafast, ultrabright X-ray pulses of the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) have enabled unprecedented views of a catalyst in action, an important step...

Artist rendition: molecules react with the surface of a catalyst in real time
News Feature

Since 2009, SLAC scientist John Bargar has led a team using synchrotron-based X-ray techniques to study bacteria that help clean uranium from groundwater in...

Photo - Sam Webb, John Bargar and Juan Lezama-Pacheco...
Press Release

Menlo Park, Calif. — Opening a new window on the way plants generate the oxygen we breathe, researchers used an X-ray laser at the...

Microscope image of photosystem crystals
News Feature

Daniel DePonte, a pioneer in finding ways to serve up a steady and precise supply of crystals, viruses and other precious samples for laser...

Photo - Daniel DePonte standing in experimental station.
News Feature

A big reason for publishing scientific results is to inform others who can then use your data and conclusions to make additional discoveries, technologies...

Jens Hummelshøj shows off CatApp
Press Release

Scientists have engineered a cheap, abundant alternative to the expensive platinum catalyst and coupled it with a light-absorbing electrode to make hydrogen fuel from...

Tiny Silicon Pillars