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

ORNL Researchers Stack the Odds for Novel Optoelectronic 2D Materials

A team of researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory used the vibrations between two layers of nanometer-thin semiconducting materials to decipher their stacking patterns in a new approach to designing the next generation of energy-efficient transistors and solar cells.

First Magnet Girder for Prototype Cancer Therapy Accelerator Arrives for Testing

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have begun testing a magnet assembly for a new kind of particle accelerator for cancer therapy.

Tracking Clouds Down Under

Researchers from ARM (the U.S. Department of Energy’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility) are installing a suite of instruments on Macquarie Island to gather data on clouds and aerosols. The experiment will help to increase scientists’ understanding of the physical processes through which clouds and aerosols are interacting in order to represent these processes more accurately in climate models.

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New Form of Electron-Beam Imaging Can See Elements that are ‘Invisible’ to Common Methods

Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed a new imaging technique, tested on samples of nanoscale gold and carbon, that greatly improves images of light elements using fewer electrons.

Non-Coding RNA: Antibiotic Tricks a Switch

Industry researchers using the beamline at the Argonne Advanced Photon Source user facility have uncovered an antibiotic lead that shuts off pathogen growth by targeting a molecular switch in a regulatory RNA structure.

Chromium Study at APS Creates a Map of Cell’s Chemical Elements

Researchers from The University of Sydney treated cells with chromium (III) before using an intense synchrotron x-ray beam at the Advanced Photon Source to identify, classify, and map chromium spots throughout the cell.

Synchronized Leaf Aging in the Amazon Responsible for Seasonal Increases in Photosynthesis

High-tech photography in the Amazon reveals that young leaves grow in at the same times as older ones perish, in strong contrast to temperate forests in North America or Europe, resulting in seasonal increases in photosynthesis that must be taken into account to build more accurate climate models.

New Way to Reduce Plant Lignin Could Lead to Cheaper Biofuels

Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and Joint BioEnergy Institute have shown for the first time that an enzyme can be tweaked to reduce lignin in plants.

Making Military Vehicle Armor Stronger and Safer with Neutrons

Researchers from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Materials Science and Technology Division, and U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development, and Engineering Center, are studying welded armor and testing a new weld wire using neutron diffraction at the HB-2B beam line of the ORNL High Flux Isotope Reactor.

Updated Workflows for New LHC

Berkeley Lab scientists contribute to new software that helps physics maximize next-generation supercomputing architectures.

PPPL Researchers Advance Understanding of Plasma Turbulence that Drains Heat from Fusion Reactors

A team of researchers - using the spherical tokamak at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and the computers at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center - has shown that a steep density gradient can reduce the strength of electron turbulence so that less heat escapes from the plasma, making the fusion reactor more efficient.

A New Recipe for Biofuel: Genetic Diversity Can Lead to More Productive Growth in Switchgrass Crops

Scientists at Argonne National Laboratory are exploring how grasses, and switchgrass in particular, can enrich the nation's biofuel supply, which is currently dominated by corn, a crop relatively easy to convert to biofuel but also in demand for food, livestock feed and industrial products.