Science Highlights
Observing Oxygen Atoms Move during Information Storage in Tantalum
Oxide Memristors – Contact: Suhas Kumar (Hewlett Packard
Labs)
Theorized decades ago and currently being developed into useable technology,
memristors are passive memory storage units especially useful for
nanoelectronics. Memristors could replace the ageing flash memory in the near
future. Memristors are usually made of a transition metal oxide layered between
two metallic electrodes and are able to change their resistance in a
non-volatile way between two states depending on an applied voltage. Read more...
X-ray Study Reveals How a Silver Contacts to Silicon Solar Cells
Form – Contact: Mike Toney, SSRL
Most solar panels use technology that employs a silver-silicon interface.
Because silver is expensive and the lead used in the creation of this interface
is toxic, researchers are interested searching for other materials that could
work instead of these components. A team of scientists are working to
understand the process involved in the silver-silicon contact formation so that
alternatives that perform the same function can be found. Read more...
See SLAC News Release: X-rays Reveal How a Solar Cell Gets Its Silver Stripes
Workshop Summary
Biological Small-Angle X-ray Diffraction Workshop Attracts
Experienced and New Users
The SSRL Structural Molecular Biology program held a 3-day comprehensive
workshop on the use of non-crystalline small-angle x-ray scattering and
diffraction (SAXS) techniques in structural biology research. The
workshop focused on solution x-ray scattering studies on biological
macromolecules and macromolecular complexes. It covered the basic theory of
small angle scattering, experimental aspects of solution scattering, as well as
recent applications of solution scattering in structural biology research. It
had particular focus on extensive software and data analysis tutorials,
covering all aspects from basic SAXS analysis to advanced modeling methods.
Some participants brought their own samples, for which data were measured
during data collection tutorials at SSRL Beam Line 4-2, and analyzed during the
workshop; other data sets were made available. The workshop trained 24
participants, with the in-depth engagement of 10 speakers/tutors from
universities and national labs, including SBM staff. The workshop was
enabled by funding from NIH NIGMS and DOE BER.
The SMB SAXS facility at BL4-2 will this summer take delivery of a Dectris
Pilatus3 X 1M detector, awarded through a successful NIH S10 grant application,
which will significantly enhance the time-resolved SAXS capabilities.
SSRL-Stanford Science Links in the News
Peering Deep into Materials with Ultrafast Science
Excerpted from March 31, 2016 Stanford News Article
Creating the batteries or electronics of the future requires understanding
materials that are just a few atoms thick and that change their fundamental
physical properties in fractions of a second. The cutting-edge facilities at
SLAC (SSRL and LCLS) and Stanford University have allowed researchers like
Aaron Lindenberg to visualize properties of these nanoscale materials at
ultrafast time scales. Read more...
Your One-stop Shop for Producing, Crystallizing
Biomolecules
Excerpted from April 21, 2016 Stanford Medicine News Center
Article
A new center has been established on Stanford University's campus to
help Stanford researchers produce biomolecules and crystallize them, for
subsequent structural studies using the SSRL beam line facilities.
Housed in the basement of the Shriram Center, the "Macromolecular
Structure Knowledge Center" contains equipment and resources for
producing and crystallizing biological molecules. Among the incubators full of
cells churning out molecules and crystals slowly growing in stacks of lab
dishes, you’ll also find Marc Deller who heads MSKC. He serves as a
bridge between Stanford scientists hoping to understand molecular structures
and SLAC, which has SSRL and LCLS for carrying out x-ray crystallography and
other structural biology techniques. Read more...
Upcoming Events
Ultrafast X-ray Summer Seminar (UXSS) - June 12-16,
2016
UXSS 2016 is a four-day program
hosted by Stanford University's PULSE Institute at SLAC. UXSS 2016 is
organized in collaboration with the Center for Free-Electron Laser Science at
DESY in Hamburg, Germany.
The goal of UXSS 2016 is to
disseminate information and train students and post-docs on new opportunities
in ultrafast science, particularly using X-ray Free Electron Lasers. Lectures
will be presented by expert scientists in this exciting new field. The
attendees will be expected to participate in the discussions and prepare a mock
beam time proposal poster. Registration closes May 13, 2016
NUFO Annual Meeting
- June 14-16, 2016, Livermore, CA
Register to participate in the 2016 Annual Meeting of the National User
Facility Organization (NUFO) at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory on June 14-16, 2016.
Key Topics:
- Federated Systems and Information Standards: Potential
Benefits to Users, Facility Mangers, and Administrators
- Business Intelligence and Data Analysis Software Tools: What
Tools are Available, Who is Using Them, and Why
- Streamlining Training and Facility Access and Improving the User
Experience
NUFO
Meeting website
Workshop on Research Opportunities in Photochemistry, Solar Energy
and Advanced X-ray Methods - June 16-17, 2016
The focus of this workshop is on fundamental questions in solar energy
conversion and potential opportunities where advanced x-ray methods may have a
significant impact. The workshop will be organized with plenary talks in
the morning sessions, followed by targeted breakout sessions for discussion and
additional talks in the afternoon. The primary goals of the workshop are
to: Facilitate the exchange of ideas and foster collaborations between
scientists focused on solar energy conversion and researchers with particular
expertise in time-resolved x-ray science; Identify challenges and opportunities
for time-resolved x-ray methods for addressing problems in basic energy
science; and Propose development paths for the most compelling science areas.
There will be 3 breakout sessions: (1) Nano- and solid state materials
for solar energy conversion; (2) Molecular materials for solar energy
conversion; (3) Fundamental chemistry and physics of light driven phenomena in
molecular and nanomaterials. Registration will open soon. For more information,
contact Kelly Gaffney or Robert Schoenlein. Workshop website
XRS 2016 - 8th SSRL School on Synchrotron X-ray Scattering
Techniques - June 21-23, 2016
Organizing Chairs: Apurva Mehta, Kevin Stone, Chris Tassone, Hongping
Yan, and Mike Toney
This school will provide a practical users' guide to planning and
conducting scattering measurements at SSRL beam lines, and will cover important
techniques including small angle scattering, thin-film scattering, powder
diffraction, structure refinement and surface x-ray scattering. The school will
address topics that are not commonly included in text books or class lectures,
and typically obtained only through on-the-experiment training. There will
be:
- hands-on sessions at SSRL beam lines
- a session of diffraction theory
- a session on diffraction data analysis
The school will also cover new instrumentation at SSRL scattering beam
lines. XRS 2016 website
SSRL Summer School on Synchrotron X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy -
July 18-22, 2016
Organizing Chair: Ritimukta Sarangi
The 2016 SSRL Summer School on Synchrotron X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy
will be held July 18-22, 2016. The five-day session will provide training in
XAS theory, experimental design, data acquisition strategies and FEFF based
EXAFS data analysis useful to both new and experienced users. Examples will be
highlighted in various fields. A two-day practical training session will focus
on teaching detailed sample preparation and data acquisition procedures at SSRL
Beam Lines 11-2, 7-3 and 9-3. Data processing and analysis techniques will be
covered on subsequent days and will include introductions to EXAFS data fitting
on simple systems leading into more involved data analysis methods to tackle
difficult problems. The final day will be targeted towards experienced users
and will include lectures on near-edge analysis techniques, combining advanced
spectroscopic techniques with EXAFS and guidelines for proper reporting of
EXAFS data. A 1-on-1 session for in-depth analysis of specific problems will be
held on the afternoon of the final day.
Participants must first apply to attend through a web portal that will soon
be available from the SSRL home web page. Once accepted, the participant will
be informed about the registration process. Space is limited and interested
participants are requested to submit an application early. The application
deadline is May 10, 2016 and accepted participants will be notified by May 20,
2016 to register. EXAFS 2016 website
12th International Conference on Biology and Synchrotron Radiation -
August 21-24, 2016
The International Biology and Synchrotron Radiation (BSR) meetings are held
every three years with the aim of presenting and discussing state of the art
applications in relevant research fields, providing a unique opportunity to
discuss the novel possibilities of synchrotrons and x-ray lasers and to promote
their applications to challenging biological problems.
This meeting provides a forum for scientists involved in research and
development on synchrotron and free electron laser sources to come together
with a broad community of biologists, with the ambition to make the best use of
the most advanced infrastructures in structural biology. Possible applications
range from atomic-resolution and time-resolved structures of biological
macromolecules, medium resolution images of the largest molecular complexes in
the living word, and cellular and sub-cellular structures.
Scientists at all possible career levels are invited to this meeting –
ranging from graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and principal
investigators both from academia and industry. There will be ample
opportunities for individual presentations. Abstracts are due by May 30,
2016. Conference website
Announcements
Workshop Planning Underway for SSRL/LCLS Annual Users'
Conference
Organizing Committees
Plan to attend our Annual SSRL/LCLS Users' Conference and Workshops to
be held at SLAC October 5-7, 2016. Contact the organizing committee to share
your input on potential invited speakers. The list of tentative workshop topics
is under discussion and consolidation, and further information will be
available in the May Newsletter and on the meeting website.
User Research Administration
Proposal Deadlines
June 1, 2016 - SSRL X-ray/VUV Proposals (for beam time eligibility beginning
in fall 2016)
July 1, 2016 - SSRL Macromolecular Crystallography proposals (for beam time
eligibility beginning fall 2016)
Submit proposals and beam time requests through the user portal.
The Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) is a third-generation
light source producing extremely bright x-rays for basic and applied
research. SSRL attracts and supports scientists from around the world who
use its state-of-the-art capabilities to make discoveries that benefit society.
SSRL, a U.S. DOE Office of Science national user facility, is a Directorate of
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, operated by Stanford University for the
U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. The SSRL Structural
Molecular Biology Program is supported by the DOE Office of Biological and
Environmental Research, and by the National Institutes of Health, National
Institute of General Medical Sciences. For more information about SSRL science,
operations and schedules, visit http://www-ssrl.slac.stanford.edu.
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Questions? Comments? Contact Lisa Dunn
