Scientific Highlights
NET ZERO Day of the four RIs at Empa
Climate change is one of the biggest challenges humanity is facing. It requires an approach, in which competences and capacities in research are combined across Switzerland to develop solutions for a transformation of our society towards net zero CO2 emissions.
Towards in situ imaging of electrolyte physical and chemical changes in Li-ion batteries
The Lithium conducting electrolyte is a critical component of Li-ion batteries, as it has an important impact on performance and its durability, in particular in case of extreme environmental conditions. At low temperatures, a partial solidification can occur, while high temperatures can promote the degradation of the electrolyte. Using time-of-flight (ToF) neutron radiography, the possibility of imaging such changes in a fully non-invasive manner was demonstrated for the first time.
Successful Ambizione Grant Applicant
Alexander Muroyama, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Electrochemistry Laboratory (LEC) at the Paul Scherrer Institute has successfully applied for the Ambizione Grant 2020 with his project “A novel process for electrochemical direct-air capture of CO2”.
Successful Ambizione Grant applicant
Patrik Winiger, Research Grant Advisor and Project Manager at ETH Zurich, successfully applied for the Ambizione Grant 2020 with the project “Macromolecular Aerosols in the Cryosphere from the Arctic to the Alps – MACrAA”. The idea was developed together with the Laboratory for Atmospheric Chemistry (LAC) at PSI. The LAC is a global leader in aerosol analytics and source identification. They own and operate a unique laboratory infrastructure with various instruments and multiple aerosol simulation chambers available for researchers.
Magnetic Field Induced Quantum Spin Liquid in the Two Coupled Trillium Lattices of K2Ni2(SO4)3
Quantum spin liquids are exotic states of matter that form when strongly frustrated magnetic interactions induce a highly entangled quantum paramagnet far below the energy scale of the magnetic interactions. Three-dimensional cases are especially challenging due to the significant reduction of the influence of quantum fluctuations. Here, we report the magnetic characterization of K2Ni2(SO4)3 forming a three-dimensional network of Ni2+ spins.
Dr. Manuel Guizar-Sicairos is awarded ICO prize
Dr. Manuel Guizar-Sicairos, beamline scientist at the cSAXS beamline, is the 2019 recipient of the International Commission for Optics (ICO) Prize. The distinction was awarded in the EOSAM conference in Rome.
Unveiling unconventional magnetism at the surface of Sr2RuO4
Materials with strongly correlated electrons often exhibit interesting physical properties. An example of these materials is the layered oxide perovskite Sr2RuO4, which has been intensively investigated due to its unusual properties. Whilst the debate on the symmetry of the superconducting state in Sr2RuO4 is still ongoing, a deeper understanding of the Sr2RuO4 normal state appears crucial as this is the background in which electron pairing occurs. Here, by using low-energy muon spin spectroscopy we discover the existence of surface magnetism in Sr2RuO4 in its normal state.
ReMaP – Current status of energy research
With its Energy Strategy 2050 Switzerland aims – beside other goals – to promote the use of domestic renewable energy and to develop the electricity power grid, which plays a decisive role in the upgrading of the system of electricity power supply. A lot of research needs to be done to achieve these ambitious goals. An important research project in this area is ReMaP and its status quo was presented at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI on 28 September.
Aging of Diesel oxidation catalysts
Diesel oxidation catalysts responsible for NO2-make in heavy duty vehicles age during operation due to deposition of chemical elements and structural changes associated with the Platinum group metals. Here, catalysts have been characterized using various methods and attempts to replicate aging characteristics have been made.
Ultrafast electron localization
This experiment performed at SwissFEL shows how fast we can localize electrons out of an electron gas into correlated, well localized states of a material. It is based on a combined ultrafast x-ray absorption and diffraction experiment on an intermetallic system.