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ALS in the News (January 2023)

Percolating Puddles in Rich Quantum Landscapes

Combining x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) with scanning micro x-ray diffraction (SµXRD), researchers found that charge density wave domains (known as “puddles”) in a nickelate material exhibit two types of dynamics: small puddles actively “percolate” (fluctuate in size and shape), while large puddles are more static. Read more »

Charge Density Wave Found in Magnetic Kagome Crystal

Researchers discovered a wave-like charge order in a magnetic material with a “kagome” geometric structure and obtained clues to the order’s origins in the material’s electronic structure. By helping to connect certain structures with emergent quantum properties, the work brings us a step closer to the goal of creating materials by design. Read more »PPT-icon-35 PDF-icon-35

First Direct Measurement of Elusive Donnan Potential

Researchers performed the first direct measurement of the Donnan electrical potential, which arises from an imbalance of charges at membrane-solution interfaces. Considered unmeasurable for over a century, the Donnan potential is relevant to a wide range of fields, from cell biology to energy storage and water desalination. Read more »PPT-icon-35 PDF-icon-35

Dirac Nodal Line in Hourglass Semimetal Nb3SiTe6

Hourglass fermion in an electronic band structure is protected by the nonsymmorphic symmetry of a layered semimetal Nb3SiTe6. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy demonstrates the band features of an hourglass fermion in k-space, such as band crossings and nodal loops. Read more »

The Donnan Potential, Revealed at Last

Researchers at the ALS recently led the first direct measurement of the Donnan potential, an electric potential that arises from an imbalance of charges at the interface of a charged membrane and a liquid. The work could yield new insights in areas such as ion transport through cellular membranes, ion exchange membranes in energy storage strategies, and water purification technologies. Read more »

Structural Investigation of Therapeutic Antibodies Using Hydroxyl Radical Protein Footprinting Methods

Well-known high-resolution structural methods are often used to characterize antibody structures, but many require specialized sample preparation that may perturb antibody structure. We describe here the relatively new method of hydroxyl radical protein footprinting, a solution-state method that can provide structural and kinetic information on antibodies or antibody–antigen interactions useful for therapeutic antibody design. Read more »

Gas-phase synthesis of racemic helicenes and their potential role in the enantiomeric enrichment of sugars and amino acids in meteorites

Molecular-beam experiments with isomer-selective photoionization via a targeted, vinylacetylene-mediated gas-phase reaction of aromatic helicenyl radicals coupled with electronic structure calculations and astrochemical modeling reveal an elegant synthetic route to racemic helicenes – ortho-fused polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), in which benzene building blocks form helically-shaped molecules. Read more »

Surface Charge and Nanoparticle Chromophore Coupling to Achieve Fast Exciton Quenching and Efficient Charge Separation in Photoacoustic Imaging (PAI) and Photothermal therapy (PTT)

Organic semiconductor nanoparticles (OSNs) convert absorbed light into heat, and are commonly used in photothermal therapy and photoacoustic imaging. Here, the OAN, Y6, is shown to form strong intermolecular packing, manipulated by surface charge under restrained sizes, yielding new pi-pi stacking and fast exciton quenching. The temperature of the tumor area can rise to more than 70 degrees under NIR irradiation, which can effectively ablate a tumor. Read more »