Media Center

Science & Vie Magazine: Quand la science réécrit l' histoire de l' art
(Print journal in French) Depuis quelques années, les instruments d'analyse de pointe des laboratoires de physique ont envahi les musées. Science & Vie, No. 1174, pg. 98-107 (July 2015)

Chemical Fingerprint of Materials Takes More Than Just a Dab of Ink
A new patent blazes a path forward for a way to simultaneously determine the physical structure and chemical makeup of materials close to the atomic level using a combination of microscopy techniques. (April 2015)

Snapshots from the 2015 APS March Meeting
Researchers from industry, universities, and major labs gathered at the annual APS March meeting held in San Antonio, Texas. Here’s a selection of this year’s presentations: Physicists Solve Art Dispute. (March 19, 2015)

Cocktail Party Physics: CSI Picasso - X-rays Reveal the Master's Materials
Every field has its raging debates among impassioned experts, and the art world is no exception. Case in point: some art historians long suspected that master painter Pablo Picasso used common house paint rather than the oil paints traditionally used in his era, which would make him the first known artist to do so. But how to prove it? (March 18, 2015)

Microscopy and Microanalysis: Synchrotron X-ray tunneling microscopy reaches atomic limit
Claiming a world record, US-based researchers have used synchrotron X-ray tunnelling microscopy (SX-STM) to analyse nickel clusters on a copper surface at a resolution of 2 nm. (November 14, 2014)
Nanowerk: Direct chemical contrast in STM imaging becomes available with new technique
(Nanowerk Spotlight) Scientists have developed a broad array of x-ray techniques for characterizing the surface morphology of materials. X-rays are very useful to investigate the structural, chemical, magnetic, and electronic properties of materials but the spatial resolution is very limited and these techniques cannot provide atomic resolution. (October 27, 2014)
Discover: The Chemistry Secrets in a Degrading Photograph
FROM THE OCTOBER 2014 PRINT ISSUE: Understanding how silver daguerreotypes corrode may help improve today’s industrial materials. (October 1, 2014)
R&D: Nanotech invention improves effectiveness of the "penicillin of cancer"
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have added a new weapon to oncologists' arsenal of anti-cancer therapies. (August 15, 2014)
The SciCom Interviews: Volker Rose, physicist
Could fading photographs and Picasso's paints improve solar panels and oil pipelines? This art-loving physicist thinks so. Interview by Jyoti Madhusoodanan. (March 28,2014)
Phys.org: Science unveils master painters' secrets
The researchers Jens Stenger (Yale University), Richard Van Duyne (Northwestern University), Joris Dik (Delft University of Technology), and Volker Rose (Argonne) gave a news conference at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in Chicago. The scientists presented to the international media their recent research on "Reconstructing and Deconstructing Paintings: Innovations At and Below the Surface". (February 13, 2014)
National Geographic: Technology Sheds Light on 6 Great Art Mysteries
#4 Did Picasso Use House Paint?
Scientists are using advanced techniques to look at history's masterpieces. (September 8, 2014)
Chicago Tribune: The daguerreotype and the X-ray: A deep look
Argonne, Smithsonian collaboration looks for breakthrough science in earliest photos. (July 15, 2013)
Chicago Tribune: Cultural heritage a small piece of Argonne's workload
Argonne also does work in other areas outside of energy research —such as medicine and biology — primarily because the lab's powerful X-rays. (July 15, 2013)
Imaging & Microscopy: Materials Analysis: Combining X-rays and Microscopes for Precise Experiments
By pairing the capabilities of X-ray analysis and extremely precise microscopy, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have developed a way to simultaneously determine the physical structure and chemical makeup of materials at close to the atomic level. (June 18, 2013)
TO BHMA: Ηταν ο Πικάσο... «ελαιοχρωματιστής» (in Greek)
Η νανοανίχνευση πινάκων του σπουδαίου ζωγράφου αποκάλυψε ότι ηγήθηκε ενός «κινήματος» χρήσης οικιακών βαφών στα έργα τέχνης. (February 24, 2013)
Correio Braziliense: Arte com tinta de parede (in Portuguese)
Pesquisadores comprovam que Pablo Picasso utilizou o material em algumas de suas telas. A análise extremamente detalhada identifica até a marca do produto usado pelo espanhol. (February 22, 2013)
Süddeutsche: Picasso sparte bei der Farbe (in German)
Er war ein Genie - und malte mit gewöhnlichen Wandfarben: Statt mit den damals üblichen Ölfarben schwang Pablo Picasso als wohl erster maßgeblicher Künstler den Pinsel mit billigen Hausgebrauchsfarben. Zu diesem Ergebnis kommen jetzt Forscher aus Chicago. (February 19, 2013)
USA Today: Picasso's masterpieces made with ... house paint
Picasso's great works had humble origins: They were painted using house paint, scientists say. (February 19, 2013)
New York Times: Picasso’s Masterpieces Made With House Paint
Scientists using a high-energy X-ray instrument say they have solved the long-running debate over what kind of paint Picasso used in his masterpieces. (February 18, 2013)
spectroscopyNOW: Pablo Picasso: Decorator
What type of paint did one of the most renowned and infamous artists of the twentieth, century, Pablo Picasso, use in his work - matte, gloss or emulsion? The Art Institute of Chicago and scientists at Argonne National Laboratory think they know having used a hard X-ray nanoprobe to help them unravel what is a decades-long debate among art scholars. (February 15, 2013)
New Scientist: Picasso created masterworks with house paint
Nanoscale studies of chips of paint have bolstered the notion that Pablo Picasso created some of his masterworks with ordinary house paint. Chemical analysis of the chips may lead to better art conservation techniques. (February 11, 2013)
Yahoo! News: Picasso's Genius Revealed: He Used Common House Paint
Pablo Picasso, famous for pushing the boundaries of art with cubism, also broke with convention when it came to paint, new research shows. X-ray analysis of some of the painter's masterworks solves a long-standing mystery about the type of paint the artist used on his canvases, revealing it to be basic house paint. (February 8, 2013)
Chicago Tribune: Physicists and X-ray help solve Picasso mystery
Some call the collaboration between the Art Institute and Argonne National Laboratory "Picasso CSI." It lacks a heart-pounding chase scene of a TV drama, though, and nothing explodes in flames. But there is a love story, cutting-edge science and a piece of equipment likened to the gun of adventurer Lara Croft, tomb raider in a tight outfit. And there's eBay. (October 10, 2012)
ESRFnews: Two cultures mix at the Met
Synchrotrons are making a big impact on the museum world but there are still cultural barriers to break down. (July 2012)
ABC Australia: Chemical analysis reveals Picasso's use of house paint (RADIO)
The Science Show with Robyn Williams on Radio National is one of the longest running programs on Australian radio. Scientific issues, debates, events, personalities, exposing scientific fraud, discoveries and broadcasting pranks have been the hallmarks of The Science Show. (February 22, 2014)
You Tube: A Look Inside Argonne's Center for Nanoscale Materials (VIDEO)
At a very small, or "nano" scale, materials behave differently. The study of nanomaterials is much more than miniaturization — scientists are discovering how changes in size change a material's properties. Researchers at Argonne's Center for Nanoscale Materials are creating new materials, methods and technologies to address some of the world's greatest challenges in energy security, lightweight but durable materials, high-efficiency lighting, information storage, environmental stewardship and advanced medical devices. (January 29, 2014)
Viewpoints: Scientists study old photos for new solutions to corrosion (PODCAST)
Material failure caused by corrosion is dangerous and costs billions of dollars every year. What if you could figure out how to prevent and treat corrosion at the tiniest "nano" level before it has a chance to cause a material to fail? Viewpoint talks to two scientists who are researching that problem using an X-ray microscope and old photographs called "daguerreotypes." (October 20, 2013)
You Tube: Smithsonian at the Advanced Photon Source (VIDEO)
Argonne and Smithsonian study materials corrosion in 19th century photographs. The project is the an example of an emerging effort that uses cutting-edge science to investigate and preserve cultural history while perhaps illuminating a path toward new scientific applications. (September 13, 2013)
Voice of America: Smithsonian, Argonne Team Up to Save Earliest Known Photographs (VIDEO)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS — The introduction of the daguerreotype in the 19th century ushered in the era of modern photography. Instead of sitting long hours for an artist to paint a portrait, customers could sit for just a few minutes while their true likeness was captured in what is now known as a photograph. Research scientists at the Smithsonian Institution are teaming up with physicists at Argonne National Laboratory outside Chicago to study these earliest known photographs, which are in danger of being lost forever. (August 15, 2013)
Deutschlandradio Kultur: Zwischen Monstermonument and Billigfarbe (PODCAST)
(Radio Interview in German) 100 Jahre nach seiner ersten Ausstellung in der Stadt präsentiert nun das Art Institute of Chicago erneut Werke von Pablo Picasso, der hier vor allem durch seine 15 Meter hohe Skulptur in der Stadtmitte bekannt ist. Zugleich wartet ein Labor in Chicago mit einer spektakulären Entdeckung über die Farbtechnik des Meisters auf. (February 20, 2013)
Slate News: Picasso Used House Paint for His Masterpieces (VIDEO)
The depth of Picasso’s artistic genius is immeasurable, but at least we now know the secret to his colorful palette: common house paint. (February 19, 2013)
AAAS: Picasso’s Paint (PODCAST)
High-energy X rays have resolved a longstanding question about Picasso’s materials. (February 18, 2013)
Physics central: Picasso's Mysterious Paint (PODCAST)
On today's podcast I talk with Francesca Casadio, a scientist at the Art Institute of Chiago, and Volker Rose, a physicist at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory. Together, this duo just answered a long-standing question about the type of paint Picasso used in some of his pieces. (February 13, 2013)
Powerful new technique simultaneously determines nanometerials' chemical makeup, topographyA team of researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory and Ohio University have devised a powerful technique that simultaneously resolves the chemical characterization and topography of nanoscale materials down to the height of a single atom. (December 2, 2014)

Two Good Things That Are Better Together STM and X-ray Synchrotron Microscopy
Over the past three decades, scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) has rapidly become a major component of the condensed matter physics toolbox. However, its Achilles heel is its inability to characterize elemental species. (November 5, 2014)

Also covered in APS Science 2014, ISSN 1931-5007, May 2015, pg. 162

Nanotech invention improves effectiveness of the "penicillin of cancer"
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have added a new weapon to oncologists' arsenal of anti-cancer therapies. (August 15, 2014)
Scientists combine X-rays and microscopes for precise experiments
Getting the atomic-level fingerprint of a material takes a lot more than just a dab of ink. (June 13, 2013)
High-energy X-rays shine light on mystery of Picasso’s paints
The Art Institute of Chicago teamed up with Argonne National Laboratory to help unravel a decades-long debate among art scholars about what kind of paint Picasso used to create his masterpieces. (February 13, 2013)
Four Argonne National Laboratory scientists receive Early Career Research Program awards
Four researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have received 2012 Early Career Research Program awards, granted to exceptional researchers beginning their careers. (May 10, 2012)
Argonne researchers win five R&D 100 awards
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory received five R&D 100 awards as judged by R&D Magazine. (July 21, 2009)