Scientists have detected a novel chemical state of the element manganese that was first proposed about 90 years ago. The discovery enables the design of a high-performance, low-cost battery that, according to its developers, outperforms Department of Energy goals on cost and cycle life for grid-scale energy storage. Read more »
ALS Work Using Scattering/Diffraction
These techniques make use of the patterns of light produced when x-rays are deflected by the closely spaced lattice of atoms in solids and are commonly used to determine the structures of crystals and large molecules such as proteins.
Imaging Magnetic Microstructure Response to Substrate Strain
A ferromagnetic thin film on a piezoelectric substrate offers a way to control magnetization in ultralow-power devices by relying on coupling between the piezoelectric and ferromagnetic components. At the ALS, researchers were able to image the electrically induced magnetic behavior and correlate it with the piezo-strain driving it. Read more »
Twisted Structures Emerge from Achiral Molecules
The spontaneous formation of chiral structures from achiral molecules could shed light on the origin of biological homochirality—how one type of chirality dominated the other in certain biological molecules. Here, resonant soft x-ray scattering (RSoXS) has been used to explore helical phases that emerge from achiral asymmetric dimers. Read more »
X-Ray Handedness Reveals Handedness of Electronic Vortices
Electronic vortex structures have been found to emerge from engineered samples of alternating complex-oxide layers. Resonant soft x-ray diffraction (RSXD) studies using circularly polarized x-rays revealed the vortices’ left- and right-handedness. The intriguing results open the door to electrically controllable chiral devices. Read more »
Scientists Confirm Century-Old Speculation on the Chemistry of a High-Performance Battery
Scientists have discovered a novel chemical state of the element manganese. This chemical state, first proposed about 90 years ago, enables a high-performance, low-cost sodium-ion battery that could quickly and efficiently store and distribute energy produced by solar panels and wind turbines across the electrical grid. Read more »
Surpassing 10% Efficiency Benchmark for Nonfullerene Organic Solar Cells by Scalable Coating in Air from Single Nonhalogenated Solvent
Realizing over 10% efficiency in printed organic solar cells via scalable materials and less toxic solvents remains a grand challenge. In this article, Harald Ade and co‐workers report chlorine‐free, in‐air blade‐coating of a new photoactive combination, FTAZ:IT‐M, which is able to yield an efficiency of nearly 11%, despite a high humidity of ≈50%. Read more »
The Microstructure of a Parrotfish Tooth Contributes to Its Toughness
Parrotfish chew on coral, producing hundreds of pounds of sand each year. Mapping the microstructure of parrotfish teeth, scientists found bundles of crystals interwoven like chain mail. The results provide a blueprint for creating ultra-durable materials for mechanical components that undergo repetitive contact, movement, and abrasion. Read more »
Modified Antibody Clarifies Tumor-Killing Mechanisms
An antibody was modified to activate a specific pathway of the immune system, demonstrating its value in killing tumor cells. The work provides a platform for disentangling different immune-system pathways and could lead to the design of improved immunotherapies. Read more »
X-Rays Reveal ‘Handedness’ in Swirling Electric Vortices
Scientists used spiraling x-rays at the ALS to observe, for the first time, a property that gives handedness to swirling electric patterns—dubbed polar vortices—in a synthetically layered material. Read more »
Enhancing the Efficiency of Organic Photovoltaics by a Photoactive Molecular Mediator
In the search for high-efficiency organic solar cells, additives often play an important role in improving the film morphology. Liquid additives, while often effective, evaporate or migrate over time. Herein, Liu et al. report a solid photoactive molecular mediator that could be employed to replace the liquid additives to tune the morphology of bulk heterojunction films for improved device performance. Read more »
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