Scientific Highlights and News
Scientific Highlights
Dr Christian Wäckerlin is appointed as assistant professor at EPFL
Dr Christian Wäckerlin (*1983), currently Research and Teaching Associate at EPFL and Project Leader at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), as Assistant Professor of Physics in the School of Basic Sciences. Christian Wäckerlin’s research focuses on nanoscience and quantum engineering.
Apochromatic X-ray focusing
A team of scientists from the Paul Scherrer Institut, the University of Basel and DESY have demonstrated the first-ever realization of apochromatic X-ray focusing using a tailored combination of a refractive lens and a Fresnel zone plate. This innovative approach enables the correction of the chromatic aberration suffered by both refractive and diffractive lenses over a wide range of X-ray energies. This groundbreaking development in X-ray optics have been just published in the scientific journal Light: Science & Applications.
Quality control of future transistors: Tackling the challenge of looking at atoms buried in silicon without moving them
Tackling the challenge of looking at atoms buried in silicon without moving them
IEEE Early Career Award 2022
For contributions to the development of detectors for XFELs and specifically for their verification, characterization, and calibration
Dancing molecules
When cycloalkanes are enclosed in a nanometer-sized pore, they adapt their shape - similar to the induced fit concept described in #biochemistry. The molecules do not all behave in the same way and surprisingly start to move when there is a lack of space at 5K.
Thomas Mortelmans receives the Swiss Nanotechnology PhD award
Thomas Mortelmans has been a PhD at the Laboratory for X-ray Nanosciences and Technologies for the last four years. He recently defended his PhD-thesis at the University of Basel entitled: "The development of a nanofluidic particle size sorter and its biomedical sciences" and was awarded the grade of summa cum laude.
Making it easier to differentiate mirror-image molecules
Researchers have shown that mirror-image substances – so-called enantiomers – can be better distinguished using helical X-ray light.
Light-Induced Magnetization at the Nanoscale
Targeted manipulations of an atom's magnetic moment are tricky, as the charge currents used for this process are extremely difficult to control . Now, a consortium of collaborators in Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia and Italy reports on a solution to this problem in the cover page article of Physic Review Letters 128, Vol. 15. As it appears, the magnetization of an atomic gas can be altered by high-power lasers using a patterned wave front. The method is promising for studying and manipulating the magnetic properties of matter at the nanoscale.
Hercules School 2022
PSI hosted again the Hercules School in March 2022. We had the pleasure to welcome 20 international PhD students, PostDocs and scientists to demonstrate our state-of-the-art techniques and methodologies at our large scale facilities, the Swiss Light Source (SLS), the Swiss Spallation Neutron Source (SINQ) and our free electron laser SwissFEL.
News
Welcome to LXN Frederik Schirdewahn
Herzlich Willkommen Frederik Schirdewahn in LXN!
Welcome to LXN Theo Wollschlegel
Herzlich Willkommen Theo Wollschlegel in LXN!
Welcome to LXN Wenxiang Hu
Herzlich Willkommen Wenxiang Hun in LXN!
Welcome to LXN Faris Dizdarevic
Herzlich Willkommen Faris Dizdarevic in LXN!
Welcome to LXN Henry Bell
Herzlich Willkommen Henry Bell in LXN!
Welcome to LXN Paolo Ansuinelli
Herzlich Willkommen Paolo Ansuinelli in LXN!
"Quantum Magnet Lunch" Retreat in Weggis
On September 30 & October 1 2022, our so-called "Quantum Magnet Lunch" team - consisting of the larger QPS group, as well as, Gabriel Aeppli and Markus Müller - has organised a two-day retreat to review our ongoing projects. The goal of the event was to fly above the details of our daily routine and to revisit our overall vision.
Swiss-French Pulsed Magnetic Field Retreat
The Cristallina-Q team has welcomed French high-field experts at SwissFEL for an informal 2-day retreat. The ten participants discussed which technical capabilities of the UZH-PSI pulsed magnet setup should be further developed and which science cases targeted in the upcoming commissioning and pilot experiment phase.
SwissFEL Cristallina "first light" milestone achieved
First X-rays have reached the SwissFEL Cristallina experimental station on 14.03.2021 which is one day ahead of schedule. The achievement of this important milestone marks the beginning of the commissioning phase of the Cristallina project.
Earlier news and highlights are found in the "News and Highlights Archive"