Scientific Highlights
A fast selenium derivatization strategy for crystallization and phasing of nucleic acid structures
The growing number of biologically important nucleic acid sequences (DNA and RNA) demands a fast and reliable method for their de novo three-dimensional structure determination. In this work, we described a fast and inexpensive strategy for the crystallization and phasing of structures of nucleic acid and nucleic acid/protein complexes.
Exciting Heavy Metal
Photocatalysts play an important role in a broad range of applications, from photochemical conversion of light energy into chemical energy through to initiating novel chemical reactions. One family of compounds that has attracted much attention is the dinuclear d8-d8 platinum, rhodium and iridium complexes that have a highly reactive electronic excited state.
Building blocks of an artificial kagome spin ice: Photoemission electron microscopy of arrays of ferromagnetic islands
Arrays of dipolar coupled ferromagnetic islands arranged in specific geometries provide ideal systems to
directly study frustration. We have examined with photoemission electron microscopy the magnetic configurations
in three basic building blocks of an artificial kagome spin ice consisting of one, two, and three rings.
The kagome spin ice arrangement is particularly interesting because it is highly frustrated and the three
Super-Resolution X-ray Microscopy unveils the buried secrets of the nanoworld
A novel super-resolution X-ray microscope developed by a team of researchers from the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) and EPFL in Switzerland combines the high penetration power of x-rays with high spatial resolution, making it possible for the first time to shed light on the detailed interior composition of semiconductor devices and cellular structures.
The first super-resolution images from this novel microscope will be published online July 18, 2008 in the journal Science.
Coherent Diffraction Imaging Using Phase Front Modifications
We introduce a coherent diffractive imaging technique that utilizes multiple exposures with modifications to the phase profile of the transmitted wave front to compensate for the missing phase information.
X-ray dark-field imaging using a grating interferometer
A type of X-ray imaging that shows detail otherwise lost, and which is compatible with conventional radiography instrumentation is now feasible, reports a study published online in Nature Materials. This technique offers unprecedented resolution for several applications, including medical imaging, security screening and industrial non-destructive testing.
Pushing atoms on a swing
The typical time scale of atomic motion during fundamental physical processes such as phase transitions in solids or molecular dynamics in chemical reactions ranges from ten to hundreds of femtoseconds. The direct observation of these processes on an atomic length scale therefore requires utrashort light pulses at wavelengths capable of resolving the underlying atomic structures.
The conducting meat in the insulating sandwich
In 2004, it was discovered that when a layer of LaAlO3 (LAO) is in contact with a layer of SrTiO3 (STO), an ultrathin layer of highly conducting material is formed where they contact one another, despite the fact that both LAO and STO are insulators. The underlying physics responsible for this phenomenon is still much disputed, despite a worldwide concerted research drive since then to explain it.
The exciting story of TiSe2
In this story of TiSe2, experiment and theory meet to provide an explanation for a long-standing enigma. In this system, the electrons rearrange themselves spontaneously at low temperature, resulting in a new periodicity from that of the original lattice. This phase change is driven by a decrease in the total energy of the system. However, the nature of this transition has been a matter of controversy for a long time.