Scientific Highlights
The secret life of an electromagnon
SwissFEL sheds light on how lattice and atomic spins jiggle together.
Strong modulation of carrier effective mass in WTe2 via coherent lattice manipulation
Schematic ultrafast surface diffraction setup used for monitoring the crystal lattice in multiple directions.
Anomalous temperature dependence of the experimental x-ray structure factor of supercooled water
Supercooled water scattering signals show an anolmalous structure factor temperature dependence suggesting decreasing density at lowering temperatures below 236 K (-37°C).
Uniquely sharp X-ray view
A new PSI method allows quantum-physical research on materials with the aid of X-ray lasers.
Conduction control in nanoparticles
Light induced propagation strain pulse, converting nanoparticles of Ti3O5 from semiconducting to metallic phase.
Ultrafast calorimetry of deeply supercooled water
FEL-based ultrafast calorimetry measurements show enhancement and maximum in the isobaric specific-heat.
Ultrafast diffuse x-ray scattering of a hybrid perovskite crystal
Organic–inorganic ‘hybrid’ perovskites have recently gained attention as a low-cost alternative to silicon solar cells. However, many properties of these materials are still poorly understood. In particular, how imperfections in the crystals, which can be both static or dynamic, affect energy transport remains unclear.
Bernina status first summer shutdown
The summer shutdown was used to install more missing hardware. With the new components the Bernina instrument will be already very close to the full design capabilities when the exciting time of user experiments will begin in 2019.
Moving Atoms by Photodoping
Understanding how and how fast we can drive atoms to create a structural phase transition is of fundamental interest as it directly relates to many processes in nature. Here we show that a photoexcitation can drive a purely structural phase transition before the energy is relaxed in the material that corresponds to a “warmer” equilibrated state.