Experiments at the ALS showed how magnetic Co atoms sandwiched between TaS2 layers reshape the material’s electronic structure. Understanding how unusual magnetic order influences electron movements in new quantum material CoxTaS2 could guide its use in advanced quantum technologies based on spintronics and valleytronics. Read more »
Science Highlights
X-Ray Magnetometer Advances Characterization of Magnetic Nanofilms
Using X-ray interferometry at the ALS, researchers characterized key optical and functional properties of magnetic materials with high sensitivity. This novel magnetometer scheme could accelerate discovery of magnetic thin film materials with broad applications across modern technology. Read more »
Multiscale X-Ray Measurements Reveal How Stretchable Polymer Semiconductors Dissipate Stress
Using multimodal, in situ measurements at the ALS, researchers uncovered a two-stage process for how stretchable polymer semiconductors adapt their structure during stretching. The findings establish a multiscale design framework for conjugated polymers used in stretchable electronic devices. Read more »
A New Framework for Designing Synthetic Enzymes
Researchers engineered protein-like polymers that replicate complex enzyme functions. This work, which was verified using X-ray characterization techniques at the ALS, offers a cost-effective, scalable approach that paves the way for functional materials in biomedicine, energy, and manufacturing. Read more »
How Wildfires Transform Soil Chemistry
X-ray microscopy tools at the ALS and SSRL mapped the chemical changes inside wildfire ash particles, revealing that pyrogenic iron and manganese gradually disappeared as the soil recovered. These findings shed light on how wildfires drive transient mineral formation that impacts micronutrient cycling and soil resilience, with implications for landscape recovery strategies. Read more »
Infrared Nanospectroscopy Reveals Behaviors of Ionic Liquids
Researchers used infrared spectroscopy at the ALS to detect the molecular behaviors of ionic liquids—which serve as high performance electrolytes in energy storage devices—under varying charge bias conditions. Their insights define a direction for targeted design of ionic liquid-based electrolytes with optimized properties for energy storage applications. Read more »
Local Disorder Impacts a Quantum Material’s Electronic States
Machine learning tools and experiments at the ALS enabled the identification of defect-rich regions in single-crystalline Co3Sn2S2 that link to how surface electrons move. Atom-level understanding of how the surface electronic properties of a magnetic semimetal can be tuned could guide its use in advanced technologies like spintronics and catalysis. Read more »
Disrupting Cancer’s Broken Molecular Switch
Researchers identified a compound that disrupts a hard-to-target tumor growth pathway in breast, lung, and other cancers and used the ALS to characterize the chemical interactions critical to its potency. This work contributed to the development of a similar compound currently undergoing clinical trials in cancer patients, and informs hypotheses for designing better drug candidates. Read more »
Thin-Film Coating Boosts X-Ray Instrument Performance
Optimized thin films doubled the efficiency of gratings in x-ray experiments at the ALS. The atoms-thick copper and gold layers let the grooved surfaces deliver energy that had previously been lost to absorption in the diffraction gratings, which are key elements in x-ray spectroscopy. Read more »
AI Delivers Rapid, Precise Design of Tumor-Targeting Protein
A new protein designed using AI can precisely recognize a key therapeutic target for cancer. X-ray crystallography data collected at the ALS confirmed the new protein’s specificity for its target, demonstrating a configurable and scalable approach to cancer therapy. Read more »
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