2018 | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

A new FPGA (field programmable gate array) module developed by Gang Huang, a research scientist in Berkeley Lab’s Accelerator Technologies and Applied Physics Division, and Larry Doolittle, a staff engineer in Berkeley Lab’s Engineering Division, for scalable control of superconducting qubits. (Credit: Peter DaSilva/Berkeley Lab)

Berkeley Lab to Push Quantum Information Frontiers With New Programs in Computing, Physics, Materials, and Chemistry

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory this week announced support from the Department of Energy that significantly expands the Lab’s research efforts in quantum information science, an area of research that harnesses the phenomenon of quantum coherence, in which two or more particles are so tightly entangled that a change to one simultaneously affects the other. Quantum information science seeks to utilize this phenomenon to hold, transmit, and process information.

Brookhaven scientists are pictured at NSLS-II beamline 8-ID, where they used ultra-bright x-ray light to "see" the chemical complexity of a new catalytic material. Pictured from left to right are Klaus Attenkofer, Dong Su, Sooyeon Hwang, and Eli Stavitski.

National Clean Energy Week: Converting CO2 into Usable Energy

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory are part of a scientific collaboration that has identified a new electrocatalyst that efficiently converts CO2 to carbon monoxide (CO), a highly energetic molecule.

Department of Energy Announces $218 Million for Quantum Information Science

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $218 million in funding for 85 research awards in the important emerging field of Quantum Information Science (QIS).

Illustration of neutron diffraction data showing water distribution (red and white molecules) near lipid bilayers prior to fusion (left) and during fusion.

Neutrons Produce First Direct 3D Maps of Water During Cell Membrane Fusion

New 3D maps of water distribution during cellular membrane fusion are accelerating scientific understanding of cell development, which could lead to new treatments for diseases associated with cell fusion. Using neutron diffraction at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, researchers have made the first direct observations of water in lipid bilayers used to model cell membrane fusion.

Heat of the Moment

The addition of a new infrared camera at Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source narrows the gap between basic and applied research in additive manufacturing.

Faces of Summit: Getting Acclimated

Postdoctoral research associate Ashleigh Barnes adds functionality to the LSDalton chemistry code to solve bigger problems using the world’s most powerful supercomputer, the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility’s (OLCF’s) 200-petaflop IBM AC922 Summit.

Summit Speeds Calculations in the Search for Exotic Particles

In pursuit of numerical predictions for exotic particles, researchers are simulating atom-building quark and gluon particles over 70 times faster on Summit, the world’s most powerful scientific supercomputer, than on its predecessor Titan at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).

Carlos Jones/Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Chemists Demonstrate Sustainable Approach to Carbon Dioxide Capture from Air

Chemists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory used a solar-powered oven to generate mild temperatures that liberate carbon dioxide trapped in guanidine carbonate crystals in an energy-sustainable way.

battery’s solid electrode – illustrated here in hexagonal slices

X-rays Uncover a Hidden Property that Leads to Failure in a Lithium-ion Battery Material

X-ray experiments at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have revealed that the pathways lithium ions take through a common battery material are more complex than previously thought.

Department of Energy Announces $21.6 Million for Computational Chemical Sciences Research

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $21.6 million in funding for 10 research awards to develop advanced software for the design of new chemicals and chemical processes for energy production and a range of other potential applications.

A cast cylinder head made from 16HT, an alloy in the ACMZ family. Image Credit: Carlos Jones, ORNL

Titan Speeds Inquiry Into Engine Alloys That Can Take the Heat

Simulations performed on the Cray XK7 Titan supercomputer at the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (OLCF) filled in a knowledge gap about high-temperature–capable alloys and inspired engineers to successfully develop a new cast aluminum–copper alloy that promises to withstand engine temperatures as high as 300°C—a temperature too extreme for current aluminum alloys—and offer more design flexibility.

Department of Energy Announces $120 Million for Battery Innovation Hub

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced plans to provide $120 million over five years to renew the Joint Center for Energy Story Research (JCESR), a DOE Energy Innovation Hub devoted to advancing battery science and technology, led by Argonne National Laboratory.