Science with light Research at the Paul Scherrer Institute Starting an experiment at the Swiss Light Source SLS. Contents
4 Science with light in 90 seconds 18 Industry and innovation 18 Investing in innovation 6 Structures of life 18 Solving industry problems 18 Developing new technologies 6 Repair signals 19 Spin-off companies 7 Losing sight at night 7 Nobel prize 20 Inside the Swiss Light Source SLS 8 Human health 22 Matter and light 8 Brain science 22 Atoms are everywhere 8 Tip-top teeth 23 Light is everywhere 10 Materials science and 23 Experiments with light engineering 24 The extraordinary light of the 10 Carbon fibres Swiss Light Source SLS 10 Fire safety 25 Super-fast electrons 11 World-beating silicon chips 25 Electrons and light 12 Manipulating magnetism 25 Brighter and brighter 12 A single atom data store 26 SwissFEL, the Swiss X-ray 13 Switching magnets with light 13 Magnetic hexagons free-electron laser at PSI 26 What is an X-ray free-electron laser? 14 Quantum materials 26 At the frontiers of science 26 Worldwide collaboration 14 Observing orbitons 27 Diamond technology 15 Secrets of superconductors
28 We make it work 16 Energy and environment 16 Natural gas from wood 17 Better batteries 31 PSI in brief 17 Painting ships 1 3 Imprint 31 Contacts
Cover photo Extremely bright X-ray and ultraviolet light beams enable researchers at the Swiss Light Source SLS to understand structures of materials at a scale one million times smaller than a grain of sand. Scientists can discern how atoms and molecules are con- nected and how these connections change in real time.
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Science with light in 90 seconds
The Swiss Light Source SLS at the Paul tute, and every year over 2500 scien- Scherrer Institute PSI is a super-micro- tists travel to PSI from Switzerland and scope that can reveal features a million around the world to use its world-lead- times smaller than a grain of sand. ing large scientific research facilities. The SLS makes super-bright, pin-point The institute is also home to two other sharp beams of X-rays and ultraviolet large research facilities: the Swiss Spal- light. They are used to learn how the lation Neutron Source SINQ and the outer appearance and behaviour of Swiss Muon Source SμS. objects is linked to what is inside. They can reveal how atoms and molecules inside an object are joined together Innovation and discovery and what they are doing. Experiments at the Swiss Light Source SLS are essential for advancing science X-rays have been used for over 100 years and solving problems in industry. They in medicine to see inside the human are helping to address contemporary body. They are routinely used by doctors issues in medicine, energy supply, the and dentists to identify broken bones, environment, and materials for new image tumours and check-up on the technology. health of teeth. At SwissFEL, ultrashort pulses of la- But for research at the forefront of sci- ser-like X-ray light will allow completely ence and engineering, a hospital X-ray new types of experiments in biology, machine is not powerful enough — a chemistry, physics and materials sci- much more advanced machine is ence to be performed. needed. This is why the Swiss Light Working together, the Swiss Light Source SLS was built. Source SLS and SwissFEL will ensure The beams of X-rays made by the Swiss Swiss science and engineering contin- Light Source SLS are a billion times ues to be at the leading edge of inno- brighter than those produced by a hos- vation and discovery for many years to pital X-ray machine and have other come. unique qualities. This means that thou- You can read more about PSI research sands of very precise and highly de- using super-bright beams of X-ray light tailed measurements can be made in and ultraviolet light in the following just a few seconds. pages. A new X-ray light source started oper- ating at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI in 2016. The SwissFEL X-ray free-elec- tron laser is complementary to the Swiss Light Source SLS and will allow investigations into extremely fast pro- cesses to become routine. PSI is Switzerland’s largest natural and engineering sciences research insti-
4 The comforts and convenience of modern life would be impossible without many decades of research into new materials.
5 Structures of life
Modern medicine has discovered that an incredible world of molecular activ- ity lies at the centre of life – making cells, destroying infections and repair- ing damage. Despite enormous ad- vances, there is still much more to be learnt in the fight against disease.
Repair signals
X-ray studies at the Swiss Light Source SLS are enabling drugs to be designed to repair defective blood vessels or to limit the growth of tumours.
A cut on the finger damages blood vessels and reduces the oxygen supply to surrounding tissue. Cells around the cut make a call for help by releasing a signalling molecule called a growth factor. The growth factor spreads through the tissue away from the cut causing other cells to spring into action and make new cells and blood vessels to repair the damage. There are many types of growth factors, each highly specialised for growing cells of a particular type, for example, for skin, for nerve cells, or for blood or lymph vessels. Each growth factor molecule has to align with a particular receptor mole- cule present on a target cell surface in order to activate it and start making new cells. This requires the molecular only be made with the state-of-the-art With this knowledge, a new generation structures of the growth factor and the X-ray instruments available at the Swiss of drugs can be developed to limit tu- receptor, each made up from thou- Light Source SLS. mour growth in the body by blocking sands of atoms, to be correctly posi- Recent experiments have determined the activity of specific growth factors tioned and oriented. the exact structure of a growth factor involved in vessel building to cut off Mapping and analysing these incredi- and receptor responsible for the growth the blood supply. bly complex molecular structures can and repair of blood and lymph vessels.
6 Losing sight at night Nobel prize
Night vision relies on a light-sensitive Venkatraman Ramakrishnan from the molecule in the retina of the eye called MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology rhodopsin. Research at PSI is learning in Cambridge, UK was one of the win- how genetic defects affect rhodopsin ners of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chem- and cause conditions such as congen- istry. The prize was awarded for deter- ital night blindness. mining the structure of the ribosome, one of the largest and most important Rhodopsin is a protein molecule that molecules in the cell. Some of the data is extremely sensitive to light and is used to achieve this was collected at used for seeing in the dark. Rhodopsin the state-of-the-art X-ray instruments belongs to a large family of proteins available at the Swiss Light Source known as G protein-coupled receptors. SLS. These molecules are found in the mem- brane wall surrounding a cell and their Ribosomes are complex, bead-like purpose is to sense changes outside structures, which exist in multiple cop- the cell and pass a signal to the inside ies in each cell. The ribosome trans- of the cell. When light hits rhodopsin, lates genetic information, producing it changes shape and triggers a cascade tens of thousands of different proteins of signals that pass to the brain. that in turn control the activity of living Using the Swiss Light Source SLS, PSI organisms. researchers have been able to capture To solve the structure, the position of pictures of rhodopsin in its extremely each and every one of the hundreds of short-lived light-activated state. They thousands of atoms that make up a now have a precise picture of the first ribosome was identified. It is one of the step in the process of seeing. most complex atomic-resolution maps From the experiments, it has been that has been made. The structure of a ribosome, one of the most important molecules in an found that night blindness is directly The experiments have been crucial for organism. The scientist Venkatraman linked to a defect in the structure of understanding how the ribosome works Ramakrishnan and his research rhodopsin. The defect causes rhodop- and the differences between bacterial group have determined the position sin to be constantly activated, even and human ribosomes. of several hundred thousand atoms when it is not receiving light. The visual There is also a practical use: many in this gigantic molecule. The system becomes desensitised, as it modern antibiotics work by blocking experiments conducted within this endeavour were performed at tries to ignore the sense of seeing a the activity of bacterial ribosomes with- the Swiss Light Source SLS and other constant low light. out affecting human ones. Infections light sources. They finally earned Understanding the molecular cause of are cured by selectively killing or inhib- Ramakrishnan – along with two the condition opens the way for pre- iting bacteria. other researchers – the Nobel Prize cisely targeted medicines. Although this in Chemistry in 2009. approach would not cure night blind- ness, it could prevent progression of a related condition, retinitis pigmentosa, towards severe loss of daytime sight.
7 Human health
Novel imaging techniques developed one knows what causes multiple scle- Tooth enamel is the hardest substance at the Swiss Light Source SLS reveal rosis. Usually, the disease is mild, but in the human body. A human tooth has extraordinary detail and are helping some people lose the ability to write, a hard outer layer of enamel covering scientists understand a range of med- speak or walk. a slightly softer layer of dentine. Unlike ical conditions. A new 3D imaging technique at the other hard tissues in the body such as Swiss Light Source SLS is being used bone, enamel can’t repair itself after to study the role of myelin at the mo- damage, and teeth need the help of a lecular level in rat brains. The 3D im- dentist to bring them back to good Brain science ages are made without needing to cut health. into the brain, a significant advantage X-rays are used routinely by dentists to Damage to myelin, the insulating coat over typical study methods. look for hidden problems with teeth, around nerve fibres in the body’s nerv- To create the 3D image, the rat brain is but these can only see details with the ous system, can lead to medical con- slowly rotated and an X-ray picture smallest size around one hundredth of ditions like multiple sclerosis. A new taken after each small step. The a millimetre. imaging method developed at the 800,000 pictures are combined by spe- A study of healthy and decayed teeth Swiss Light Source SLS can make pic- cially written software to give a com- with the powerful X-rays at the Swiss tures of the myelin coating of neurones plete overview of the concentration and Light Source SLS has been able to re- in animal brain tissue with extremely thickness of myelin around the brain. cord details ten thousand times fine detail. The results show that the highest my- smaller. elin concentration is around the bundle The molecular design of the enamel The nervous system contains millions of nerve fibres connecting the left and and dentine in teeth is extremely intri- of neurones (nerve cells) that are highly right hemispheres of the brain. This cate when viewed at such small scales, specialised to carry messages from one new imaging approach opens up the but it is responsible for making teeth part of the body to another. All neu- possibility of studying myelin changes tough and hard-wearing. rones have a cell body and nerve fibres in relation to different patterns of The study was able to map the arrange- that can vary in length from a few mil- illness. ment of very fine collagen fibres in the limetres to over a metre. The sciatic dentine and study the region where nerve is the longest nerve fibre in the enamel and dentine meet. The fine human body. It connects the base of structure was found to be extremely the spinal cord to the big toe. Tip-top teeth similar in many different teeth and, Most neurones are coated with myelin, surprisingly, was unaffected in teeth a good insulator that allows electrical Sugary foods and poor toothbrushing suffering from tooth decay. signals to travel along nerve fibres as can lead to painful cavities, a trip to Currently dentists repair teeth with ma- fast as 400 km/hour. In multiple scle- the dentist, and fillings. X-ray studies terials that ignore the molecular design rosis patients, the myelin coating is of the molecular structure of healthy of teeth. The results of this study sug- damaged causing messages from the and damaged teeth suggest that new gest that longer lasting treatments brain to be passed on poorly or not at types of fillings could be developed could be developed by making fillings all. This is like a power cable short that would last much longer than cur- that have a better match with the nat- circuit if the insulation is damaged. No rent treatments. ural structure of teeth.
8 The molecular design of the enamel and dentine in teeth is extremely intri- cate when viewed with X-rays, but it is responsible for making teeth tough and hard-wearing.
9 Materials science and engineering
Technology can take big leaps forward of the lignin-based fibres to compare Structural fire engineering research in form and function by using new them with standard commercial fibres. combines data from many different materials. They can be quickly tested In the commercial fibre, the internal sources to gain a better understanding using the bright beams of X-rays and structure was quite simple — a dense of materials and structures at fire tem- ultraviolet light at the Swiss Light core wrapped in a less dense outer peratures. The data can be used to Source SLS. layer. In the lignin-based fibre, a design and improve safety regulations. sponge-like structure developed with tiny pores around 1000 times smaller Carbon fibres than a grain of sand. With this unique view of carbon fibres, Carbon fibres are very stiff and are used engineers are developing a deeper un- Scientists from PSI can create the to reinforce other materials to make derstanding of the links between car- world’s smallest patterns on reflec- tive silicon wafers which will be them tougher. Manufacturing carbon bon fibre structure and performance. needed in future computer chips. fibre is expensive, so engineers are The manufacturing technique investigating ways to reduce the cost. was developed at the Swiss Light Fire safety Source SLS. Carbon fibre composite materials are strong and lightweight and ideal for Intense heat from fires in buildings high performance engineering in air- causes wooden beams to crack even craft, yacht masts and artificial limbs. when they are far from the flames of Carbon fibres are most often made from the fire. High-speed X-ray imaging a carbon-rich starting material called can show how the inner structure of polyacrylonitrile. Long strands of the wood affects its mechanical strength. starting material are heated to a very high temperature in an oxygen-free Trees grow fastest in spring and early enclosure so that they do not burn. This summer, laying down a ring of light- process, called carbonisation, leaves coloured wood. A ring of darker, denser the fibre composed of long, tightly in- wood follows in the autumn. Across the terlocked chains of carbon atoms rings, lines of ‘ray cells’, that stretch with only a few non-carbon atoms re- from the centre of the tree out to the maining. bark, are used to store water. Making carbon fibre is expensive, so At the Swiss Light Source SLS, wood engineers at Honda R&D Europe can be rapidly heated to hundreds of (Deutschland) are investigating new degrees in a specialised laser furnace, ways to manufacture carbon fibres with with the cellular structure and cracking improved performance and reduced patterns being measured at the same cost. Lignin, which is found in wood, is time by X-ray tomographic microscopy. one new starting material for carbon In beech wood, for example, a durable fibre that is being explored. hardwood construction material widely Working with PSI scientists, Honda en- used across Europe, thermal cracks gineers have used advanced X-ray to- have been found to mostly start along mography imaging to build highly de- the ray cells and in the junctions of the tailed 3D maps of the internal structure seasonal growth layers.
10 World-beating silicon chips millions of times every second. The metres. The next step is to use extreme average silicon chip contains millions ultraviolet light with a wavelength of Extreme ultraviolet light at the Swiss of transistors in a square millimetre. 13.5 nanometres. Light Source SLS is used by the semi- Silicon chips are made by laying down At the Swiss Light Source SLS, PSI sci- conductor industry to develop new a light-sensitive masking layer on the entists have made the smallest struc- manufacturing techniques. PSI holds silicon and then using light to make a tures in the world – rows of wires just the world record for the smallest fea- pattern with the fine detail of the 14 nanometres apart. For comparison, ture ever made on a silicon chip. circuits. a human hair is about 50,000 nano- In fine art painting, painting smaller metres wide and grows at 5 nanometres Lithography – the technology to print details needs a smaller brush. In lithog- per second. tiny circuits on silicon chips – has ena- raphy, finer details are made using light The PSI lithography capability is some bled e-mail, mobile phones, streaming with shorter wavelength. 5–10 years ahead of standard industry video, and safer cars, trains and planes. Commercial lithography machines have methods, and it is widely used by com- The building block of all silicon chip gone from using ultraviolet light with a panies and universities to test manu- circuits is the transistor, a precise wavelength of 365 nanometers to using facturing methods for making the next switch that can be turned on and off deep ultraviolet light of 193 nano- generation of silicon chips.
11 Manipulating magnetism
The ability to manipulate magnetism is vital for modern computer technol- ogy. Music, photos and videos can all be stored by recording their informa- tion in magnetic patterns at the scale of atoms. Future technology is de- manding new ways to store informa- tion and quickly access rapidly growing mountains of data.
A single atom data store
Researchers from Swiss universities working with IBM in the United States have prepared single atoms in the lab into a state that could, in the future, see stable single atom magnets being used to store data in computers.
MRAM is a type of computer memory where information can be stored per- manently without the need to continu- ally refresh the data. MRAM is used in aircraft and satellite control systems as it is not affected by cosmic radiation. Shrinking the size of MRAM compo- nents would allow more data to be stored, but the atomic structure of the material sets an ultimate size limit. A single atom is the smallest structure for storing data that can ever be achieved. The Swiss/US team have shown, through experiments at PSI, that single atoms of cobalt placed on an ultra-thin PSI researchers are at the forefront of magnesium oxide surface can be studying new materials where the placed into the high energy state that magnetic properties can be changed is the necessary first step towards cre- using a pulse of light from a laser. ating a stable magnet out of a single atom.
12 Switching magnets with light Using light for magnetic switching clearly works. But what exactly is happening is In a new class of materials, pulses of still the subject of ongoing debate and laser light can change the magnetic exploration in the research community. properties. Research into this unusual behaviour is at an early stage, but the new compounds are expected to find Magnetic hexagons wide use in technology. Precise geometric patterns of tiny mag- PSI researchers are at the forefront of nets can be made on silicon with dif- studying new materials where the mag- ferent shapes and layouts. When the netic properties can be changed using magnet size is less than a micrometre, a pulse of light from a laser. This novel new phenomena emerge. These struc- feature has the potential for many appli- tures could be used in future electronic cations including ultrafast data storage. devices for memory applications or to Computer hard drives store data on rap- perform logic operations. idly spinning disks with a magnetic coat- ing. As the disks fly underneath small A research group at PSI has developed read-write heads, data is recorded in tiny a method to make regular patterns of patterns of north and south poles. tiny magnets and study them with an In a conventional hard drive, the time X-ray microscope built at the Swiss taken to switch a north pole to a south Light Source SLS. pole is typically a few nanoseconds. The tiny magnets are shaped like grains Using the new materials and a laser of rice. When the magnets are laid out pulse, the switching time can be made in hexagons, the six magnets making 1000 times faster, around 1 picosecond up the hexagon arrange themselves (a picosecond is a million-millionth of with north and south poles touching to one second). form a stable ring. Some of the extremely precise and de- Under the X-ray microscope, the ar- manding experiments can only be rangements of north and south poles carried out using a new generation of can be followed as more hexagons are large experimental facilities called joined together. As the network of hex- X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs). For agons becomes larger and larger, the many years, PSI scientists have travelled tiny magnets do not have a clear choice to do experiments at the LCLS facility in on the direction their north and south the United States, and the SACLA facility poles should point. The whole network in Japan. Soon the Swiss X-ray free- must rearrange itself into a stable con- electron laser SwissFEL at PSI, and the figuration. European XFEL in Hamburg, will allow The PSI research group has developed these studies to take place in Europe as precise mathematical models to ex- well. plain what is seen. Using this well-con- The experiments rely on synchronising trolled system, the group can accu- a laser pulse, to alter the magnetism of rately test situations found in real the material, with an ultrashort X-ray materials. pulse that immediately follows, to take a snapshot picture of the magnetic poles.
13 Quantum materials
Research in quantum materials ex- Observing orbitons Motion in a solid is extremely compli- plores the complex and unexpected cated. Every electron and atomic nu- behaviour that takes place when large An unusual synchronised motion of cleus gets pushed and pulled by all the numbers of electrons interact with electrons in a solid that was predicted other electrons and nuclei in the solid each other in solids. Harnessing these over 30 years ago has finally been which may themselves be in motion. strange effects has the potential to observed by physicists at the Swiss The strong interactions, and the huge transform the next generation of elec- Light Source SLS. number of electrons and protons in- tronic materials. volved, make it very difficult to predict and understand the behaviour of solids.
14 Orbitons could be of use in a quantum more superconductors are being dis- The complex behaviour of elec- computer which would perform calcu- covered that defy explanation. The trons in superconductors can be lations much faster than today’s com- newer superconductors can work at measured in great detail using the puters. warmer temperatures — around 190 state-of-the-art X-ray instruments A major stumbling block for quantum degrees colder than room temperature at the Swiss Light Source SLS. computers is that memory states are — and are known as ‘high-temperature typically destroyed before calculations superconductors’. can be performed. Orbiton transitions The most important building blocks of are extremely fast, taking just femto- a typical high-temperature supercon- seconds. That’s so fast that using spi- ductor are layers of copper and oxygen nons and orbitons may offer a good way atoms arranged on a square grid. The of storing and manipulating informa- copper atoms act like tiny magnets and Physicists simplify the description of tion in a realistic quantum computer. seem to be connected in some way with solids using the idea of a ‘quasiparti- the high superconducting temperature. cle’. These are not real objects inside This is surprising, as superconductivity the solid, but a shorthand way of de- Secrets of superconductors and magnetic fields are normally seen scribing how a large number of elec- as rivals with magnetic fields destroy- trons and protons are moving together Superconductors are one of the great ing the superconducting state. in a coordinated way. scientific discoveries of the 20th cen- One research team from the USA have The complicated motions of all the tury. Their incredible ability to let elec- mastered the art of making extremely electrons in a solid can be imagined as tricity flow freely without resistance at thin films of superconductors with just the much simpler motion of quasipar- low temperatures is steadily being har- two copper-oxygen layers. ticles, which behave more like isolated nessed. Scientists working at PSI are at In a unique collaboration, the team particles that ignore each other. the forefront of the worldwide effort to travelled to Switzerland to work with An individual electron cannot be split explain how they actually work. scientists at PSI and use the extremely into smaller components — it is de- sensitive and advanced X-ray instru- scribed as a ‘fundamental particle’. But Superconductivity was discovered in ments at the Swiss Light Source SLS. in the 1980s, physicists predicted that 1911. In superconducting wires, electric PSI is the only place in the world where many electrons travelling up and down current can flow freely without causing this collaboration could get the results a chain of atoms could be described as the wires to heat up. They can carry a they needed. three quasiparticles: a ‘holon’ carrying current more than 100 times that of a The experiments showed that in these the electron’s charge, a ‘spinon’ carry- copper cable of the same size. super-thin films of superconductor ma- ing its magnetism and an ‘orbiton’ Superconductors need to be cooled to terial, magnetism had not gone away carrying its energy and momentum. low temperatures, around 290 degrees and could be understood using very In an experiment of great technical colder than room temperature, using simple descriptions. The experiments achievement, physicists at PSI have liquid nitrogen or liquid helium. show that magnetism is very important been able to measure orbiton and spi- They are used inside hospital MRI scan- for producing the high superconducting non quasiparticles in a material. A ners, as electronic filters in mobile temperature. beam of X-rays was fired at a group of phone base stations, and in some This result is one step closer to the electrons, causing it to absorb energy power grids to transfer large amounts ultimate dream of making a room-tem- and allowing a spinon and orbiton to of power between nearby installations. perature superconductor. form, moving with different speeds in The simplest superconducting materi- different directions. als are well-understood, but more and
15 Energy and environment
Making the best use of Planet Earth’s Natural gas from wood Biomass waste from homes, farms and limited fuel resources is important for sewage treatment plants is fermented society. Science at PSI is playing its Wood is a versatile, renewable energy into biogas in many locations in Swit- part to reduce the impact of human resource that can be sustainably har- zerland. However, wood is not easily activity on the environment. vested from Swiss forests. PSI has fermented, and is usually burnt to pro- developed technology that allows vide heat. wood to be efficiently converted into The Paul Scherrer Institute PSI has de- natural gas. veloped an alternative way to process wood. First, it is heated to high temper- PSI researchers are working hard to get the best performance out of new materials for prototype sodium-ion rechargeable batteries. Using X-rays at the Swiss Light Source SLS, changes to battery mate- rials can be followed in real-time on an atomic scale while the battery is charging and discharging.
16 ature and converted into hot gases. lines and damage the materials used prototype sodium-ion batteries as they Then the hot gases are recombined to to convert the hot gas mixture into are charging or discharging and to ob- form synthetic natural gas. Gas from methane, the main component of nat- serve the changes on an atomic scale. wood can be supplied into the gas grid ural gas. Measurements with X-rays at the Swiss giving greater flexibility on where the Scientists at PSI have used results from Light Source SLS can be made very fuel can be used. experiments at the Swiss Light Source quickly and give many useful details The hot gas mixture from wood is a SLS to develop a material that can on the structure of the different mate- mixture of carbon monoxide and car- successfully work in the hot gas stream rials inside the batteries. Many tens of bon dioxide, hydrogen, and steam. to remove the sulfur. prototype batteries can be tested at the There are also unwanted by-products The new material is based on the ele- same time. including tars and sulfur-containing ment molybdenum. It was developed The long-term goal is to develop sodi- compounds. by using X-ray beams to study chemical um-ion batteries that can be used as Sulfur-containing compounds must be reactions in real time and identify how easily as lithium-ion batteries. PSI re- removed. They are corrosive to pipe- the material should be adapted to have searchers are working hard to get the the best performance. best performance out of this new tech- nology.
Better batteries Painting ships Lithium-ion batteries are a common source of energy for laptops, tablets Ships and ocean structures are covered and mobile phones. New types of so- with specialised marine paints to pro- dium-ion battery could cost less to tect them from corrosive seawater. 3D make and have almost the same per- X-ray images of the microscopic struc- formance. ture of marine paint show how it offers such good protection. A big challenge for modern society is how to store energy. Lithium-ion bat- Ocean-going ships are usually painted teries are widely used for electronic with an epoxy coating mixed with alu- gadgets and are increasingly being minium or glass flakes. The flakes over- used in electric cars and to store energy lap each other, like the tiles on a roof, produced by wind turbines or solar forcing water to take a much longer path plants. before it can reach the steel below. Swapping lithium for sodium could be A partnership between the London Cen- a way to make a new type of recharge- tre for Nanotechnology, University Col- able battery. Sodium is similar to lith- lege London, PSI and AkzoNobel is ium in terms of its chemical properties, working to optimise paint coatings for and is much more abundant. Sodium ships and ocean structures. X-ray im- is also up to fifty times less expensive ages show the shapes and arrangement to buy. of individual flakes in the paint on the Like lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion nanometre scale. batteries must be able to provide a Endurance studies of painted metal in constant operating cell voltage and be salt water can take many years. By using chemically and structurally stable when the X-ray information in computer sim- charging and discharging. ulations, the performance of new paints At PSI, the future potential of sodi- can be better predicted and product um-ion batteries is being studied. Us- research and development time is ing X-rays, it is possible to see inside shorter.
17 Industry and innovation
PSI actively encourages industry to Solving industry problems to understand how magnetic data stor- make use of its research. age for computers can be miniaturised Industry users frequently visit the beyond current limits. Swiss Light Source SLS, and compa- Intel and ASML work with researchers nies will often combine their knowl at PSI to evaluate advanced lithography Investing in innovation edge and expertise with that of univer- techniques using extreme ultraviolet sity research teams and the expert light that could be used to manufacture Access to state-of-the-art synchrotron scientists working at PSI. the next generation of silicon chips. light facilities is essential for compa- nies in the life science sector to be able The examples below are just a few of the to develop new medicines to tackle many where industry is using the state- Developing new technologies conditions like Alzheimer’s, arthritis of-the-art instruments at the Swiss Light and cancer. Source SLS to solve immediate prob- An advanced imaging technique devel- lems, refine procedures for later use in oped at the Swiss Light Source SLS is Proteins are tiny molecular machines product development and manufactur- a promising new method for the diag- that perform all of the jobs needed to ing, or build a full understanding of new nosis of breast tumours. It is being keep cells alive. Their activity can be materials. tested at the Kantonsspital hospital in modified by drugs and medicines, that A partnership between the London Cen- Baden with industry partner Philips. can, in many cases, target a very specific tre for Nanotechnology, University Col- protein. Atomic structures of proteins lege London, PSI and AkzoNobel is Mammography is a medical technique and drugs measured with synchrotron working to optimise paint coatings for used to diagnose and locate breast light can show how drugs and proteins ships and ocean structures. tumours. Doctors looking at an X-ray work together at the molecular level, Honda R&D Europe (Deutschland) are picture of a breast can identify if a tu- and indicate how to modify them to studying prototype carbon fibres for mour is present or could be forming. change their activity. improved performance and reduced Seeing the difference between healthy At the Swiss Light Source SLS, two manufacturing cost. and unhealthy tissue can sometimes experimental stations for measuring Conventional oil production leaves ap- be very difficult. A technique pioneered protein and drug structures are sup- proximately 50–70% of the oil behind. at the Swiss Light Source SLS for mate- ported by industry: one by the Swiss Shell Global Solutions International B.V. rials science can make significantly pharmaceutical companies Novartis are working with PSI and Mainz Univer- better X-ray pictures of breast tissue. and Hoffmann La Roche and the Ger- sity in Germany to develop safe methods A conventional X-ray picture relies on man Max Planck Society; the second to extract oil and gas trapped inside X-rays being absorbed by different partially funded by a partnership be- small pores in sedimentary rocks. amounts as they pass through different tween the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, The feel of food when eaten is of crucial types of tissue. Novartis, Actelion, Boehringer Ingel- importance for manufacturing commer- The new technique also records how heim, Proteros, and Mitsubishi Chem- cial food products. The Swiss food com- the X-rays change direction. This addi- ical in Japan. pany Nestlé uses the Swiss Light Source tional information significantly im- SLS to understand how the texture of ice proves the image in the X-ray picture. cream changes with temperature. It offers the prospect of earlier diagno- IBM is working at the Swiss Light Source sis of breast tumours. SLS with a number of Swiss universities
18 The underlying technology of DECTRIS X-ray detectors was originally developed at PSI. It has transformed research at synchrotron light sources as well as industrial and medical X-ray measuring methods.
Spin-off companies ical X-ray applications. The technology equipment for applications in photon- used in the most successful product, ics, optoelectronics, displays, biotech- Four spin-off companies based around the Pilatus detector, was developed by nology and other areas under the brand synchrotron light have been created the DECTRIS company founders at PSI name PHABLE. Its products are used from technology and processes devel- and laid the foundation for a successful for industrial scale manufacturing, re- oped at PSI. international market position. DECTRIS search and development. now employs over 70 people. Expose and Excelsus collect data for DECTRIS is the leading producer of The founders of Eulitha have developed pharmaceutical and bio-technology hybrid photon counting X-ray detectors novel lithography techniques using the companies at the Swiss Light Source in the world. Their detectors have trans- extreme ultraviolet light produced at SLS and help to analyze the collected formed research at synchrotron light the Swiss Light Source SLS. Eulitha data. sources as well as industrial and med- provides nano-patterning services and
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Inside the Swiss Light Source SLS
21 Matter and light
Everything is made of atoms, and at- Atoms are everywhere rounds the nucleus. Atoms join up in oms are tiny. Tens of thousands of countless different ways to make up all them can fit across the width of a Atoms are the building blocks of the the substances and materials in the human hair. At PSI, researchers use natural world. At the centre of an atom, universe. super-bright, pin-point sharp beams protons and neutrons are tightly bound of X-ray light to find out where atoms together into a nucleus. A cloud of are and what they are doing. electrically charged electrons sur-
22 Light is everywhere Radio waves and microwaves are the the eye is turned into an electrical sig- lowest energy light. Medium-energy light nal to the brain. Ultraviolet light in Visible light is a narrow slice of a much is called visible light or ultraviolet light, sunlight causes melanin to combine wider spectrum of light ranging from high-energy light is called X-rays, whilst with oxygen, darkening the skin to give radio waves to gamma rays. Light car- gamma rays have even higher energy. a suntan. X-rays allow a doctor to look ries energy that can be absorbed by the Microwaves can be used to heat up inside the human body. atoms that make up matter. food. Visible light striking the retina in
Experiments with light
At the Swiss Light Source SLS, beams of X-ray and ultraviolet light are used to illuminate materials and objects to understand their properties at the scale of atoms. When an object is placed in a beam of X-ray light, the beam passes through and is scattered by the atoms inside the object. The scattered light is captured by de- tectors (that act like cameras) placed around the object. From the detected signals, the locations and movements of atoms inside the object can be worked out. Rapid sequences of snap- shots can be combined into 3D movies of the atomic action. Experiments can be performed simul- taneously at up to 16 experimental stations at the Swiss Light Source SLS. Each station specialises in a different type of experiment with light. SwissFEL will have six experimental stations when fully operating.
At the Swiss Light Source SLS, beams of ul- traviolet and X-ray light are used to illumi- nate materials and objects to understand their properties at the scale of atoms.
23 The extraordinary light of the Swiss Light Source SLS
The synchrotron light at the SLS is pro- duced in the storage ring which is built in- side a circular concrete tunnel. Here, electrons circulate at almost the speed of light, making a million full circles in every second. A team of accelerator operators ensures smooth operations of the accel- erator 24 hours a day.
24 To create the extraordinary light needed the resulting light beams at a constant for ground-breaking scientific experi- brightness. ments, researchers and engineers have The Swiss Light Source SLS works con- come together to build an enormous tinuously through the day and night for machine of great technical precision: more than 220 days a year. After a break The Swiss Light Source SLS. The light in operation, it takes only a few minutes source is housed inside a striking cir- to refill the storage ring with all of the cular building in the grounds of the Paul required electrons. Scherrer Institute PSI on the western side of the River Aare. Electrons and light Under a magnificent curved wooden roof, the intricate and sophisticated Whenever super-fast electrons are equipment of the Swiss Light Source forced to change their direction, they SLS is fascinating to see. At first, the emit light. At the SLS, devices known maze of pipes, cables and laboratories as undulators wobble the electrons can be confusing. But after walking rapidly from side to side, like a slalom. around the building for a while, it be- This causes them to emit light in a high comes easier to see how everything is quality beam that can be used in ex- connected. periments. Whilst the electrons continue on their curved path inside the storage ring, the Super-fast electrons emitted light beam speeds straight ahead to the experimental stations. At the SLS, so called synchrotron light Special mirrors guide and focus the is emitted by a beam of electrons that light, concentrating an extremely have been accelerated to extremely bright, pin-point sharp beam of ultra- high speed by a sequence of particle violet or X-ray light onto the materials accelerators. The electrons travel inside being studied. a storage ring – a highly evacuated tube surrounded by a concrete tunnel with a circumference of 288 meters. Hun- Brighter and brighter dreds of magnets along the tube keep the electrons at the centre of the con- A new development in vacuum technol- stantly curving path. ogy could allow the Swiss Light Source The electron beam at the Swiss Light SLS to have even brighter beams of Source SLS is as thin as spider silk, and light. This major upgrade could be the electrons can circulate for hours. ready to operate in 2021. It would ex- From time to time, electrons in the tend the lifetime of the light source by beam collide with each other and get 20 years and open up new areas of pushed out of the beam. To compen- science. sate for the loss, new electrons are regularly added into the beam to keep
25 SwissFEL – the X-ray free-electron laser at PSI
The SwissFEL X-ray free-electron laser is routed through a long undulator sec- is the newest large research facility of tion. Here, with the aid of magnets, the PSI. Its unique X-ray light opens the electrons are forced onto a fast slalom way for important experiments in the course. Through their constant change fields of energy, environment, medi- in direction, the electrons emit ultra- cine, materials, and new technologies. short pulses of X-ray light in close suc- The SwissFEL X-ray light originates Thus SwissFEL reinforces Switzerland’s cession. in the undulators. They were leading position internationally in sci- produced in collaboration with ence and research. And the economy the Daetwyler group: benefits too. At the forefront of research Peter Daetwyler (left) with Swiss- FEL project leader Hans Braun with the undulators, installed and SwissFEL generates ultrashort pulses The experiments at SwissFEL make it ready, shortly before the start of X-ray light that have the characteris- possible to understand matter and of operations at the newest large tics of laser light. They are a billion materials on an entirely new level – research facility of PSI. times as bright as the light produced whether in biology, chemistry, engi- by the Swiss Light Source SLS. neering or materials sciences. The X-ray pulses are so short and in- tense that they make it possible to The Swiss Light Source SLS has great Strengthening Switzerland produce films of the movement of at- successes to show: The static struc- as a business location oms and molecules. For this reason, tures of numerous important proteins the work of SwissFEL is complementary have been investigated here. With SwissFEL is strongly oriented towards to that of SLS. Together these two facil- SwissFEL it is now also possible to track the demands of the Swiss universities ities can accommodate the increasing movement within these proteins. This and industry and takes their research demand for state-of-the-art X-rays and opens up completely new insights into interests and requirements into ac- ultraviolet light. processes in the human body. count. The chemical composition of a sub- stance, together with the geometric In the long term, SwissFEL will strengthen structure, determines how it behaves Switzerland as a research location, con- in a chemical reaction. At SwissFEL, tributing at the same time to the com- researchers can observe the individual petitiveness of the Swiss economy. steps in such reactions. SwissFEL This competitive capability is based What is an broadens our understanding of how mainly on bringing innovative products X-ray free-electron laser? magnetic properties of materials arise to market before the competitors can. and how they can be altered. With that First-rate research possibilities in a An X-ray free-electron laser concen- SwissFEL is paving the way for the com- company’s home country allow the trates X-ray light into an unimaginably puters of the future, which will be ex- timely development of new knowledge bright, ultrashort X-ray laser pulse. pected to store ever more data in an as well as novel methods and tools that Worldwide, there are only a few com- ever smaller space. Researchers can address global challenges. parable facilities. investigate, for example, how magnetic But Swiss industry also profits imme- data can be selectively stored with the diately from the new research possibil- In an X-ray free-electron laser, a beam help of light, and how to achieve sig- ities at SwissFEL, whether through of electrons is accelerated to nearly the nificant increases in the speed of infor- collaboration with PSI and the univer- speed of light. Then this electron beam mation transfer. sities or through studies at the Swiss-
26 SwissFEL – the X-ray free-electron laser at PSI
FEL facility within the framework of their That’s because every question to be However, if the researchers want to own development work. probed – whether biological, chemical, understand more precisely what hap- or physical – sets different require- pens with atoms or molecules while ments for the experimental setup and they are forming a new chemical bond, Still more SwissFEL, the method best suited for the study. or how they react to external influences starting in 2020 But the type of X-ray light is also deci- such as electromagnetic fields or light, sive in what can best be investigated: they need “soft” X-ray light with a In 2020, a second beamline will begin At the moment, the researchers at longer wavelength. A second beamline operating at SwissFEL. It allows a still SwissFEL can conduct their tests with at SwissFEL will generate exactly this greater variety of experiments. so-called “hard” X-rays. This X-ray light kind of light. It goes into service in has an extremely short wavelength and 2020. The experiment stations at SwissFEL is optimally suited, for example, to were conceived to exactly meet the track how and where atoms move dur- expected requirements of its users. ing an ultrafast process.
27 Plumber Perfecting pipework carrying cooling We make it work water and compressed air
Many different people with a wide range of skills keep the PSI facilities working day and night. Meet a few of them:
Radiation protection technician Ensuring a safe working environment for all Technical coordinator Supervising projects and Cleaner coordinating plans of action Cleaning carefully around delicate and expensive equipment
Accelerator physicist Delivering high quality synchrotron light for experiments
Assistant to head of department Helping the head of department with all administrative and organisational Software developer Electronics engineer tasks Writing code to control high-precision Developing electronic components experiments for precise positioning of scientific instruments
28 Electrician Crane driver Installing main power and providing Skillfully moving tonnes of equipment complex electric cabling of the beam line around every day
Vacuum engineer Making air-free paths for particle beams Beamline technician Maintaining the beam line and building new components
Detector physicist Making ultra-fast detectors to capture experimental results
Scientist Designing experiments to make new Multi-skilled mechanic discoveries Creating precision components for unique scientific equipment
29 Aerial view of the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI. The circular building in the back- ground is the Swiss Light Source SLS, on the west bank of the River Aare. The construction of the SwissFEL X-ray free-electron laser is located in the forest across the river, on the left of the picture.
30 PSI in brief
The Paul Scherrer Institute PSI is a research institute for natural and engineering sciences, conducting cutting-edge research in the fields of matter and materials, energy and the environment and human health. By performing fundamental and applied research, we work on sustainable solutions for the major challenges facing society, science and the economy. PSI develops, constructs and operates complex large research facilities. Every year more than 2500 guest scientists from Switzerland and around the world come to us. Just like PSI’s own researchers, they use our unique facilities to carry out experiments that are not possible anywhere else. PSI is committed to the training of future generations. Therefore about one quarter of our staff are post-docs, post-graduates or apprentices. Altogether PSI employs 2100 people, thus being the largest research institute in Switzerland.
Imprint
Concept/Text/Editing Dr. Martyn J. Bull
Editing committee Dr. Martyn J. Bull, Christian Heid, Contacts Dr. Laura Hennemann, Head of the Research Division Head of the Condensed Matter Laboratory Dr. Paul Piwnicki Photon Science Prof. Dr. Frithjof Nolting Photography and Graphics Prof. Dr. Gabriel Aeppli Tel. +41 56 310 51 11 All Photos Scanderbeg Sauer Tel. +41 56 310 42 32 [email protected] Photography except: [email protected] Head of the Femtochemistry Laboratory page 6: Unchanged picture: Chief of Staff Photon Science Prof. Dr. Christoph Bostedt The Structural Basis for mRNA Recognition and Cleavage by the Ribosome-Dependent Dr. Mirjam van Daalen Tel. +41 56 310 35 94 Endonuclease RelE; Cell, 2009 Dec 11; Tel. +41 56 310 56 74 [email protected] 139(6): 1084–1095 (doi: 10.1016/j. [email protected] cell.2009.11.015), copyright: Head of the Advanced Photonics creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Science Coordinator and Laboratory page 27: Frank Reiser CEO SLS Techno Trans AG Dr. Luc Patthey page 30: Markus Fischer Stefan Müller Tel. +41 56 310 45 62 Tel. +41 56 310 54 27 [email protected] Layout [email protected] Mahir Dzambegovic Head of the Nonlinear Optics Laboratory Head of the Macromolecules and Dr. Hans Braun a.i. Printing Bioimaging Laboratory Tel. +41 56 310 32 41 Paul Scherrer Institut Dr. Oliver Bunk [email protected] Available from Tel. +41 56 310 30 77 Head Corporate Communications Paul Scherrer Institut [email protected] Dagmar Baroke Events and Marketing Head of the Micro- and Tel. +41 56 310 29 16 Forschungsstrasse 111 Nanotechnology Laboratory [email protected] 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland Dr. Yasin Ekinci a.i. Tel. +41 56 310 21 11 Tel. +41 56 310 28 24 Villigen PSI, October 2018 [email protected] Paul Scherrer Institut :: 5232 Villigen PSI :: Switzerland :: Tel. +41 56 310 21 11 :: www.psi.ch
SLS_Science with light_e, 10/2018