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

Redirecting the Immune System to Kill Cancer Cells More Efficiently:  While remarkable progress has been made in the field of oncology, many cancers are still presently incurable. X-ray diffraction data obtained at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source could potentially pave the way for powerful new anti-cancer treatments. 

Revealing the Mechanism of an Otherworldly Metal-Insulator Transition:  Hexagonal iron monosulfide, also known as troilite, features an intriguing crystal structure with multiferroic properties that make it a leading candidate for new technologies such as spintronics. Researchers used the U.S. Department of Energy’s APS to investigate that potential. 

Twisting, Flexible Crystals Key to Solar Energy Production:  Long-hidden molecular dynamics that provide desirable properties for solar energy and heat energy applications to an exciting class of materials called halide perovskites have been revealed by researchers using two U.S. Department of Energy facilities including the Advanced Photon Source.

Bringing to Light the Polymers that Mimic Biomolecular Machines:  A growing amount of research is geared toward creating synthetic soft matter that produces mechanical work through motion in response to external stimuli. Users of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source report the synthesis of a supramolecular-covalent hybrid polymer that contracts when exposed to visible light.

Defining the Laser Speed Limit for 3-D Printing with Metal:  Metal objects manufactured by 3-D printing often contain tiny holes that can weaken the final product. Researchers using the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source detailed how such pores are created and defined the best combination of laser energy and scanning speed to avoid causing the defects.

Reading Between the Diamonds: Expanding Deep Carbon:  Research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source redefines the conditions under which carbonates can exist in the Earth’s lower mantle, adding to our understanding of the deep carbon cycle and the Earth’s evolution.

Tracking the Early Stages of Sequential Infiltration Synthesis:  Researchers used the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source to reveal the structural evolution of inorganic cluster growth and crystallization resulting from sequential infiltration synthesis in polymeric templates with potential applications that extend to virtually all technologies in which periodic nanomaterial structures are desirable.

Strong and Resilient Synthetic Tendons Produced from Hydrogels:  Researchers who transformed a standard hydrogel into an artificial tendon with properties that meet and even surpass those of natural tendons used the the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source to reveal the microscopic structures responsible for the tendon's outstanding features.

A Framework for an Anti-Cancer Light Therapy:  Where cancer is concerned, sometimes the treatment can be as bad as the disease.  Research using the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source shines new light on a photodynamic therapy as an effective and safe treatment for cancer.

Revealing Platinum's Role in Clean Fuel Conversion:  Because platinum is rare and expensive, scientists have been seeking ways to create catalysts that use less of this precious metal. Research at a number of facilities including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source has revealed dynamic, atomic-level details of how an important platinum-based catalyst works in the water gas shift reaction, an important step in producing and purifying hydrogen for multiple applications.

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.