The Silicon Valley Leadership Group hosted a meeting to introduce its members to the area’s light sources and how they help advance innovation and promote economic competitiveness. The event was sponsored by Congresswomen Zoe Lofgren and Anna Eshoo together with Berkeley Lab (LBNL) and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. Read more »
All News & Updates
Industry Expert Helps ALS Scientists Craft Relevant Research
Steve Harris has worked for U.S. auto manufacturers for the past 30 years as a research scientist, testing and investigating various promising materials and technologies. As a result, Harris knows a thing or two about what the industry values. Harris is now at the ALS as a visiting scientist, sharing his insight and knowledge with ALS staff scientists working on battery research. Their results could help drive the future of battery-powered transportation in this country.
Structural Biology Helps Drug Discovery
Last year, drug discovery company Plexxikon made front-page news with its highly successful anti-cancer drug, Zelboraf, a product that was chemically optimized using data from ALS x-rays. Designed to disrupt malignant melanoma, the drug was so successful in human testing that trials were halted so that patients in the trial could all be given Zelboraf. Zelboraf marked a significant advancement for patients with metastatic melanoma who historically have had very limited treatment options.
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Wine, Water, and X-Ray Tomography
ALS user Andrew McElrone’s research on grapevine rootstock water transport physiology is key to the future of California’s grape-growing industry. The plant biologist’s ultimate goal is to develop sustainable water use strategies for growers, giving them hard data about how much drought their plants can sustain and which species are ideal for an agricultural future with an uncertain water supply.
Corie Ralston: New Head of Berkeley Center for Structural Biology…and Award-Winning Writer
Corie Ralston’s appointment as Head of the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology (BCSB) has her busy looking at budgets, funding, and big-picture goals. The biophysicist staff scientist has been with BCSB for more than 10 years, so much of what she’s considering comes from an intimate familiarity with the day-to-day operations and challenges of theRead More Read more »
Direct Kinetic Measurements of a Criegee Intermediate
“Criegee intermediates” are elusive molecules that play a pivotal role in atmospheric chemistry and are also byproducts of key combustion reactions. At the Chemical Dynamics Beamline, the reaction rates of one form of Criegee intermediate was directly measured for the first time, with some surprising results. Read more »
Two Novel Ultra-Incompressible Materials
Materials that are mechanically, thermally, and chemically stable at extreme conditions are valuable for aerospace engineering and fission/fusion research. Researchers have synthesized and characterized two such materials: Re2N and Re3N are both extremely incompressible. Read more »
Superconducting Topological Insulators
ARPES studies show that it’s possible to introduce superconductivity into a topological insulator. The resulting novel properties, such as relativistic electrons and quantum memory, may in the future provide the basis for a whole new type of computer.
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ALS Reveals New State of Matter
ALS user groups from Princeton and Stanford have been making waves this past year with several high-profile papers and extensive news coverage of their work on a new state of matter embodied by so-called “topological insulators,” materials that conduct electricity only on their surfaces. Read more »
Molecular Measurements of the Deep-Sea Oil Plume in the Gulf of Mexico
To study the effects of oil spilled from the Deepwater Horizon blowout, researchers collected deep-water samples from across the Gulf of Mexico and analyzied their physical, chemical, and microbiological properties using a variety of techniques, including SR-FTIR. Read more »