2016 | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

NREL Discovery Creates Future Opportunity in Quantum Computing

Scientists at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) discovered a use for perovskites that runs counter to the intended usage of the hybrid organic-inorganic material.

When Nanofabrication Leads to Nanoscience: Optics Developed at the CFN Bring NSLS-II's Ultra-Bright X-rays into Focus for Scientific Imaging

Optics are critical components in a one-of-a-kind x-ray microscope that was recognized with a 2016 Microscopy Today Innovation Award and named a 2016 R&D 100 Award finalist.

Researchers Peel Back Another Layer of Chemistry with ‘Tender’ X-rays

Scientists can now directly probe a previously hard-to-see layer of chemistry thanks to a unique X-ray toolkit developed at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

Argonne Theorists Solve a Long-Standing Fundamental Problem

Scientists from Argonne National Laboratory formulated a new method to provide a general and exact solution for any system at any energy, a solution that will benefit many areas of physics, chemistry, materials science, nanoscience and biology.

Emilio Ramirez: Path to Biomass Research Full of Twists, Turns and Personal Discovery

Ramirez, a California native who is now a University of Tennessee doctoral candidate working with the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, acquired his first experience with bioenergy as the lead operator of a biomass circulating fluidized-bed combustion facility.

SLAC’s High-Speed ‘Electron Camera’ Films Atomic Nuclei in Vibrating Molecules

An ultrafast “electron camera” at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory has made the first direct snapshots of atomic nuclei in molecules that are vibrating within millionths of a billionth of a second after being hit by a laser pulse.

Major Next Steps for Fusion Energy Based on the Spherical Tokamak Design

Physicists at the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab and the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy are considering the design and materials for the next step in fusion reactions research – a device called a Fusion Nuclear Science Facility that could become a pilot plant and serve as a forerunner for a commercial fusion reactor.

Poof! The Weird Case of the X-ray that Came Out Blank

Researchers at SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source have observed a nonlinear optical effect, called “stimulated scattering,” that had never been seen in X-rays before and is a milestone in the quest to understand how light interacts with matter.

Neutrino Experiments Utilize ORNL Experts, Equipment to Explore the Unknown

Three large neutrino experiments – PROSPECT and COHERENT, both based at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, and the Majorana Collaboration based at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota – are gearing up with researchers from many institutions to advance our understanding of neutrino physics.

PPPL and Princeton Help Lead a New Center to Understand and Mitigate Runaway Electrons that Pose a Challenge for ITER

Researchers from nine U.S. universities and national laboratories are working together to explore the causes and solutions for runaway electrons, which travel at nearly the speed of light and could damage the interior walls of future tokamaks.

How to Keep the Superhot Plasma Inside Tokamaks from Chirping

Using computer simulations at the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab, researchers discovered conditions that explains the phenomenon of chirping – a wave in plasma that breaks from a single note into rapidly changing notes - and may help to optimize the design of fusion energy plants in the future.

Graduate Student Eric Metodiev Finds Freedom and His Voice in Physics

Under the mentorship of Bill Morse in the Physics Department, Metodiev has worked for the past four years on the Muon g-2 experiment, studying the properties of muons, tiny subatomic particles that exist for only 2.2 millionths of a second.