Latest news from Department of Energy, Office of Science on Newswise en-us Copyright 2024 Newswise 115 31 / /images/newswise-logo-rss.gif /articles/seeing-more-sharply-into-self-assembled-nanomaterials/?sc=rsin /articles/seeing-more-sharply-into-self-assembled-nanomaterials/?sc=rsin Wed, 06 Nov 2024 16:25:18 EST To build nanostructures, researchers need to probe these structures' internal architecture at various states of assembly in three dimensions. This project used several methods to produce X-ray computed tomography (CT) scans that provided record-setting, 7-nanometer resolution and information on the elements in the materials. The researchers then constructed 3-D frameworks to reveal the nanostructures' imperfections and interfaces. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/for-layered-2d-materials-robotics-produces-cleaner-interfaces-between-stacked-sheets/?sc=rsin /articles/for-layered-2d-materials-robotics-produces-cleaner-interfaces-between-stacked-sheets/?sc=rsin Tue, 05 Nov 2024 14:45:30 EST Layered assembly of 2D materials such as graphene have potential roles in the development of new electronic devices. Manufacturing these materials at a large scale while making them atomically clean is a major challenge. In this study, researchers used a special robotic system to assemble graphene heterostructures into large sheets with atomically clean interfaces. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/belle-ii-detector-produces-world-s-most-precise-measurements-of-subatomic-particle-lifetimes/?sc=rsin /articles/belle-ii-detector-produces-world-s-most-precise-measurements-of-subatomic-particle-lifetimes/?sc=rsin Mon, 04 Nov 2024 09:20:42 EST The new Belle II experiment recently made a world-leading measurement of the lifetime of a particular charmed baryon, a particle that is produced and decays very quickly under very high energy levels similar to the universe shortly after the Big Bang. This demonstrates the experiment's ability to make the extremely precise measurements of the sort needed to discover physics beyond the Standard Model of Particle Physics. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/novel-hardware-approach-produces-a-new-quantum-computing-paradigm/?sc=rsin /articles/novel-hardware-approach-produces-a-new-quantum-computing-paradigm/?sc=rsin Wed, 30 Oct 2024 13:00:43 EST To run on a quantum computer, algorithms must be decomposed into a sequence of quantum gates, a difficult process. In this study, researchers developed a novel "hybrid" approach to quantum hardware design that replaces part of the quantum circuit with a physical evolution that relies on natural interactions within the system. This approach significantly reduces the complexity of executing quantum algorithms. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/doe-announces-funding-for-climate-resilience-centers/?sc=rsin /articles/doe-announces-funding-for-climate-resilience-centers/?sc=rsin Wed, 30 Oct 2024 11:25:27 EST The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Climate Resilience Centers (CRCs). These new centers will be dedicated to rapidly developing new science and talent to address the nation's most pressing climate resilience challenges. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/celebrating-spooky-science/?sc=rsin /articles/celebrating-spooky-science/?sc=rsin Wed, 30 Oct 2024 09:15:48 EST Science isn't scary, but it can be spooky! For Halloween, we're highlighting some "spooky" research that the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science supports. In fact, the physics community celebrates Dark Matter Day on Halloween! We hope that this roundup puts you in the mood to dig a little deeper into the wonders that surround you. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/illuminating-the-journey-of-a-4-billion-year-old-asteroid/?sc=rsin /articles/illuminating-the-journey-of-a-4-billion-year-old-asteroid/?sc=rsin Mon, 28 Oct 2024 15:20:36 EST Researchers at the Advanced Photon Source joined an international effort to study tiny fragments of a nearby asteroid. The specks of asteroid dust were collected from asteroid 162173 Ryugu by a Japanese space mission. The team discovered that Ryugu began its life in the outer solar system as part of a larger asteroid more than 4 billion years ago. Since breaking off from its larger parent, Ryugu slowly made its way to its current orbit within 60,000 miles of Earth. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/light-makes-special-materials-move-at-ultrafast-speeds/?sc=rsin /articles/light-makes-special-materials-move-at-ultrafast-speeds/?sc=rsin Fri, 25 Oct 2024 15:55:18 EST Relaxor ferroelectrics have greatly enhanced electrical and mechanical properties that originate in the materials' domain structure. Knowing how quickly these materials' properties can change is critical to understanding them. However, scientists have not been able to measure how fast these materials can respond. This study measured this reaction speed using ultrafast electron diffraction at the atomic level to obtain snapshots of the evolving domain structure. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/applications-now-open-for-department-of-energy-computational-science-graduate-fellowship/?sc=rsin /articles/applications-now-open-for-department-of-energy-computational-science-graduate-fellowship/?sc=rsin Fri, 25 Oct 2024 11:15:31 EST The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a fellowship open to all U.S. students pursuing doctoral degrees in fields that use high-performance computing to solve complex science and engineering problems. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/cool-journey-to-the-center-of-the-earth/?sc=rsin /articles/cool-journey-to-the-center-of-the-earth/?sc=rsin Fri, 25 Oct 2024 10:15:07 EST Patience and complexity are the hallmarks of fundamental scientific research. It takes time to do what we do at the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. Case in point: Technical staff at the DOE's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory have built a prototype of a superconducting cryomodule for the Proton Improvement Plan II (PIP-II) project. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/for-heating-plasma-in-fusion-devices-researchers-unravel-how-electrons-respond-to-neutral-beam-injection/?sc=rsin /articles/for-heating-plasma-in-fusion-devices-researchers-unravel-how-electrons-respond-to-neutral-beam-injection/?sc=rsin Thu, 24 Oct 2024 13:30:59 EST Plasmas for fusion research can be heated using neutral beam injection (NBI). With NBI, fast neutral particles from a beam source are injected into the plasma then ionized so that the particles can transfer energy to existing plasma electrons and ions. This transfers the ions' energy and heats the plasma. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/emergent-device-boosts-neuromorphic-computing/?sc=rsin /articles/emergent-device-boosts-neuromorphic-computing/?sc=rsin Wed, 23 Oct 2024 12:10:07 EST Researchers have shown that a novel memristor device consisting of metal, dielectric, and metal layers remembers the history of electrical signals sent through it. The interface between metal and dielectric in the novel device is critical for stable switching and enhanced performance. Simulations indicate that circuits built on this device exhibit improved image recognition. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/a-new-view-of-the-in-between-years-of-our-universe/?sc=rsin /articles/a-new-view-of-the-in-between-years-of-our-universe/?sc=rsin Mon, 21 Oct 2024 09:45:56 EST Just like we use photos to reflect on memories of our past, astrophysicists want to use images of far-off galaxies to understand what the universe was like in its juvenile years. But current imaging technology can only reach so far back in history -- 90 to 95 percent of the volume of our 14-billion-year-old universe remains unseen. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/engineered-yellow-seeded-camelina-packs-more-oil/?sc=rsin /articles/engineered-yellow-seeded-camelina-packs-more-oil/?sc=rsin Thu, 17 Oct 2024 13:15:31 EST In oilseed crops like canola, yellow-seeded varieties generally produce more oil than brown-seeded varieties. Camelina, a bioenergy crop closely related to canola, usually has brown seeds. Scientists have now disrupted genes called TT8 that are responsible for making seeds brown, producing an engineered camelina with light yellow seeds that accumulates more than 20% more oil than ordinary varieties. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/calling-all-university-faculty-accepting-applications-for-summer-2025-visiting-faculty-program/?sc=rsin /articles/calling-all-university-faculty-accepting-applications-for-summer-2025-visiting-faculty-program/?sc=rsin Wed, 16 Oct 2024 13:15:49 EST College and university faculty at emerging research institutions are invited to apply to collaborate with national laboratory scientific research staff on research projects of mutual interest, the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science announced today. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/discover-science-applications-open-for-summer-2025-undergraduate-internships/?sc=rsin /articles/discover-science-applications-open-for-summer-2025-undergraduate-internships/?sc=rsin Wed, 16 Oct 2024 13:10:51 EST As the nation continues to build a diverse, clean-energy workforce, the Department of Energy (DOE) today announced that applications are being accepted for the Summer 2025 term of two undergraduate internship programs. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/in-a-fusion-device-plasma-a-steep-ion-temperature-gradient-slows-the-growth-of-magnetic-islands/?sc=rsin /articles/in-a-fusion-device-plasma-a-steep-ion-temperature-gradient-slows-the-growth-of-magnetic-islands/?sc=rsin Tue, 15 Oct 2024 14:10:27 EST Pockets of instability called magnetic islands in the plasma in a fusion device can disrupt plasma confinement. Scientists predict that islands grow because of the temperatures of electrons and ions in a plasma flattening out within the island, but ion temperatures have not been previously measured. In this new research, researchers found that contrary to expectations, the ion temperature profile did not flatten but instead exhibited a steep change across islands. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/making-difficult-quantum-many-body-calculations-possible/?sc=rsin /articles/making-difficult-quantum-many-body-calculations-possible/?sc=rsin Fri, 11 Oct 2024 15:05:44 EST One of the methods scientists use to study quantum many-body systems is the ab initio approach, but some ab initio methods run into severe computational problems when using realistic interactions. This study introduces wavefunction matching and uses it to perform lattice simulations with realistic interactions. This allows scientists to make calculations that were once impossible. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/3d-printing-one-of-the-strongest-stainless-steels/?sc=rsin /articles/3d-printing-one-of-the-strongest-stainless-steels/?sc=rsin Thu, 10 Oct 2024 14:05:48 EST Researchers have developed a way to consistently produce 17-4 PH stainless steel using additive manufacturing, or 3D printing. The rapid change in temperatures that occur in these materials after they are heated by the lasers in 3D printers make it difficult to achieve the toughness needed for 17-4 PH steel. This research used bright X-ray beams to observe those fast changes in real time, then altered the chemical composition to compensate for them. Department of Energy, Office of Science /articles/scientists-accelerate-uranium-beam-with-record-power/?sc=rsin /articles/scientists-accelerate-uranium-beam-with-record-power/?sc=rsin Wed, 09 Oct 2024 14:05:26 EST Researchers at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams reached a new milestone in isotope studies, accelerating a high-power beam of uranium ions to a record 10.4 kilowatts of continuous beam power to a target. The beam enabled scientists to produce and identify three new isotopes, gallium-88, arsenic-93, and selenium-96. Department of Energy, Office of Science