The Advanced Photon Source
a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility

Earth’s Early Toxic Atmosphere:  In research partly conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source, scientists revealed that Earth’s early atmosphere resembled that found on Venus today, but then evolved differently, providing a better understanding of the early evolution of Earth’s atmosphere that may help scientists identify planets elsewhere in the galaxy that may host living organisms.

A multi-institution research team working at three U.S. Department of Energy x-ray light sources including the Advanced Photon Source obtained data that define how antibodies can recognize a highly unstable molecule that has been found to play a central role in some forms of cancer, enabling scientists to design ever more efficient antibodies.

Relaxation at the Molecular Level:  Research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source may be of great value for uncovering the information needed to identify new treatments for neuromuscular disorders associated with impaired muscle relaxation kinetics.

A New Method for Probing Material Strength:  In an effort to better understand how materials deform under extreme conditions, researchers using the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source have developed a new experimental method for probing large-strain and high strain-rate material strength.

Direct Observation of Piezomagnetic Domains in Uranium Dioxide:  Only a few crystalline compounds are known to exhibit the rare phenomenon of piezomagnetism. Research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source provides new information on the complex relationship between piezomagnetism and crystallographic structure, which could lead to new types of sensors and other electronic devices.

Synthesis of a Potent Antibiotic Follows an Unusual Chemical Pathway:  Images of a protein involved in creating a potent antibiotic reveal the unusual first steps of the antibiotic’s synthesis. These structures, determined at two U.S. Department of Energy x-ray light sources including the Advanced Photon Source, could allow researchers to adapt this and similar compounds for use in human medicine.

Ironing Out Technetium Contamination:  Millions of medical imaging procedures each year rely on radioactive technetium. One of its radioisotopes, technetium-99, is very long-lived, poses a risk to the environment, and is a potential health threat. Research based in large part on studies at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source bring us closer to understanding how high concentrations of technetium-99 can be treated by simple iron, which is inexpensive and readily available.

X-ray Tomography Reveals How Solid-State Batteries Charge and Discharge:  Detailed 3-D information from research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source could help improve the reliability and performance of solid-state lithium batteries, which use solid materials to replace the flammable liquid electrolytes in existing lithium-ion batteries.

Inside the Black Box of Iron Oxide Formation:  Scientists know that iron hydroxides can capture heavy metals and other toxic materials, and also can be natural semiconductors. While these properties suggest many applications, the full details of how iron hydroxides form on a quartz substrate have been hidden in a “black box” of sorts — until research supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon devised a way to open that box and observe the moment iron hydroxide forms on quartz.

Uncovering New Insights about the Brains of Individuals with Schizophrenia:  Research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source was essential to the discovery that neuronal structures that allow neurons to communicate with each other are different in individuals with schizophrenia and that the structural dissimilarity observed varied from patient to patient.

New Promising Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2:  An international research team carrying out studies at two U.S. Department of Energy x-ray light sources including the Advanced Photon Source has identified and further developed novel antibody fragments against the SARS coronavirus-2.