X-ray light sources and electron imaging

Researchers at SLAC are developing experimental techniques to evaluate new candidates for inertial fusion energy targets. 

Laser-driven break up of "buckyballs" is recorded in real-time by X-ray imaging at LCLS. 

A new machine learning algorithm rapidly reconstructs 3D images from X-ray data. 

SLAC and Stanford partner with Argonne National Laboratory and others toward a quantum-interconnected world.

After a major upgrade, SLAC's X-ray free-electron laser is 10,000 times brighter and thousands of times faster. Now, researchers are using LCLS to observe electrons in real time as they move across molecules.

21-26 September 2025 at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

Researchers used LCLS to capture the ultrafast motion of electrons inside molecules – at scales never before possible. 

They used SLAC’s ultrafast X-ray laser to follow the impact of a single electron moving within a molecule during an entire chemical reaction.

The technique could improve how scientists study materials and drive advancements in high-performance technologies, such as next-generation computer chips.

With a suite of reimagined instruments, researchers take up scientific inquiries that were out of reach just one year ago.