Researchers showed that a vertical voltage reverses the direction of horizontal polarization of a Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ thin film. This coupled switching removes a key limit of conventional ferroelectrics and enables stable, low-voltage, high-density memory that could cut the energy use of electronics. Read more »
Strain Unlocks Unconventional Magnetism in Ruthenium Dioxide
Researchers saw signs of altermagnetism in thin, strained ruthenium dioxide, previously thought non-magnetic in bulk form. This finding revives the material as a candidate for spintronic devices that could be faster and more energy-efficient than today’s ferromagnet-based electronics. Read more »
Stacking Bits: Layer-Selective Skyrmions Point to 3D Memory
Using element-specific X-rays, researchers discovered skyrmions occupied only alternating layers in a synthetic antiferromagnet, not all layers as expected. The ability to control where and how skyrmion bits form within stacked layers offers a design strategy for 3D memory devices that store more data per volume. Read more »
Soft X-Rays Illuminate the Future of Microchips
As devices do more every year, their microchips must keep advancing. At beamline 11.0.1.2, researchers Thomas Ferron and Qi Zhang use resonant soft X-ray scattering to reveal buried nanostructures in polymers used in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) photolithography, informing the microchips of the future. Read more »
Hidden State Precedes Superconductivity in Kagome Metal
Experiments at the ALS revealed a hidden electronic phase that breaks time-reversal symmetry before a charge-density wave forms in a kagome metal. Because hidden electronic order can compete with or shape superconductivity, this finding helps guide the search for high-temperature, unconventional superconducting materials. Read more »
Microscopy Reveals How Early Human Diets Led to Tougher Teeth
Microscopy at the ALS revealed that nanocrystal misorientation in tooth enamel tracked major dietary shifts in primates, contributing to enamel’s resilience. These structural details provide a blueprint for developing tougher, crack-resistant bioinspired materials, next-generation structural ceramics, and coatings. Read more »
Burning Questions: How Heat Shield Materials Evolve Under Extreme Heat
Superlight ablator materials are critical for protecting spacecraft under the extreme heat of atmospheric reentry. Researchers combined in situ X-ray microcomputed tomography at the ALS with super-resolution techniques to characterize the microstructural evolution of these materials during heating. Read more »
Revealing the Electronic Signature of Unusual Magnetism
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 »
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 »
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 »
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