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The article discusses the 10th anniversary of the NSLS-II (National Synchrotron Light Source II) facility, which has seen significant growth and development over the past decade. The facility now has 29 operational beamlines, compared to the initial 6, and has hosted thousands of users and published numerous papers. The article also highlights the recent addition of the HEX beamline and the ongoing construction of three new beamlines as part of the NEXT-II project. The NSLS-II facility is focused on advancing clean energy technologies, materials science, and various scientific disciplines. The article concludes by emphasizing the facility's commitment to continued growth and delivering cutting-edge science in the future. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the development of advanced fly scans using the Mamba software project at the High Energy Photon Source (HEPS) in Beijing, China. The Mamba software aims to provide a reliable and flexible framework for beamline experiments, with a focus on high framerates and data throughputs. The article explores the architectural essentials of fly scans and discusses issues related to motion control, triggering sequences, detectors, and other fields of interest in fly scans. The document discusses the challenges and potential solutions for conducting fly scans with framerates of 10 kHz or higher at HEPS, including limited motor encoder ports, performance limitations of detectors and readout software, and the unsuitability of stepping motors for high-frequency scans. It proposes solutions such as using DeltaTau PowerPMAC for encoder processing and implementing scan fragmentation to address clock drift. The document also discusses the potential for signal distortion in high-frequency data captures and the need for improved hardware/software system architecture for data processing. The source code for the Bubo software is available as part of the open-source edition of Mamba. [Extracted from the article]

The Soochow University Beamline, located at the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory in China, is a Soft X-ray beamline designed for studying energy-related materials and devices. It operates in the energy range of 45 eV–1100 eV and is specifically tailored for investigating Li, B, C, N, O, F K-edges, and most L-edges of transition metals. The beamline offers various capabilities, including X-ray absorption, photon in photon out, and in situ/operando studies of energy materials and devices in gas/liquid environments. It has been successful in producing high-quality research papers and is open to users worldwide. The beamline is a collaborative effort between Soochow University and the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, with funding from Soochow University. It is the first synchrotron radiation beamline in China to be funded by a university. [Extracted from the article]

ChemMatCARS is a facility located in the USA that specializes in synchrotron X-ray studies of chemical and materials crystallography, liquid interface science, and X-ray scattering. The facility has been used by various research groups to investigate molecular science in areas such as chemistry, materials research, biology, and engineering. Liquid interfaces are studied at ChemMatCARS to understand interfacial self-assembly, molecular interactions, chemical reactivity, and the preparation and characterization of functional assemblies. The facility offers a range of X-ray techniques and detectors, as well as user-friendly software for data collection and analysis. ChemMatCARS also engages in outreach activities and diversity programs to expand access to their facility. The facility is currently undergoing upgrades to enhance its scientific capabilities. The article provides examples of research conducted at ChemMatCARS, including the study of interfacial electrostatics, separations of metallic ions, and the synthesis of 2D and nanomaterials. The text discusses the research conducted at the liquid interface scattering facility at ChemMatCARS. The facility focuses on studying various topics such as solvent extraction processes, nanomaterial synthesis, tunable nanoparticle arrays, and life processes at liquid interfaces. The research aims to understand the chemical species present at the liquid interface, their arrangement, and the mechanisms involved in ion transport. The facility utilizes X-ray measurements to probe these processes and has made significant discoveries in specific ion effects, the role of anions, and the [Extracted from the article]

In addition, the performance requirements of computing components like microprocessors, disks, and network interfaces are increasing more slowly than the IT infrastructure requirements of synchrotron facilities. For instance, upgraded facilities could generate tens of petabytes of data annually, and kilohertz real-time data analysis is anticipated. X-ray facilities are currently going through a wave of upgrades. [Extracted from the article]

Protein crystallography has been a workhorse in drug discovery for decades [[39]], and the implementation of the first MX synchrotron beamline at the ESRF was the go-ahead for most synchrotrons, leading to 90% of X-ray single-crystal structure determinations currently coming from synchrotrons [[40]]. The famous quote by the Bavarian comedian Karl Valentin from the early twentieth century might cross people's minds when reflecting on the challenges of the twenty-first century: " I Die Zukunft war früher auch besser i " ["Even the future was better in the past"]. Industry process transformation has an amazing potential of saving CO SB 2 sb . For example, in steel production (responsible for about 6% of CO SB 2 sb emission worldwide [[6]]) ULCOS [[7]], an ultra-low CO SB 2 sb steel-making project of industries and academia (47 partners, 15 European countries), aims to reduce CO SB 2 sb emissions by 50%. [Extracted from the article]

The German Committee for Research with Synchrotron Radiation (KFS) is responsible for coordinating and developing strategies for synchrotron radiation applications at national and international sources. The committee acts as a link between users, facilities, and funding agencies, providing advice on scientific topics and accessibility for researchers. The committee consists of nine elected scientists, coopted members, and guests representing various German and European photon facilities. The election for the 13th KFS took place in September 2023, with 1,100 valid ballots returned. The new chair is Christian Gutt, and Birgit Kanngießer is the co-chair. The committee also has members responsible for specific areas such as digitalization, European collaborations, instrumentation, sustainability, transfer and industry, young investigator and user affairs, and public relations. [Extracted from the article]

Synchrotron facilities, such as MAX IV, are becoming crucial tools for materials and process research, as well as catalysts for interdisciplinary and cross-organizational collaborations. These facilities, particularly fourth-generation synchrotrons like MAX IV, provide brilliant X-rays and fast detectors, offering a unique toolbox for material science and innovation in the shift towards a sustainable society. However, the knowledge of utilizing these tools is not widespread enough in the industry. Collaborative platforms, such as the MetalBeams network in the metals industry, the Treesearch platform in the forest industry, and the Northern Lights on Food initiative in the food industry, are examples of successful efforts to bridge the gap between academia and industry and maximize the potential of synchrotron facilities. Expanding these collaborative platforms to other sectors and involving industry in the evolution of research infrastructures can further enhance sustainable innovation. [Extracted from the article]

The Pohang Accelerator Laboratory (PAL) in South Korea is a leading scientific facility that attracts thousands of researchers each year. PAL operates the Pohang Light Source (PLS) and PAL-XFEL, which are synchrotron accelerators used for various scientific experiments. In 2013, the Industrial Science Support Center (ISSC) was established at PAL to provide a platform for industries to access synchrotron science. The ISSC offers expedited beamtime access and comprehensive support for industries conducting experiments. The center has supported various industries, including secondary batteries, semiconductors, and biotechnology. PAL aims to expand its industrial science support and enhance beamline efficiency in the future. [Extracted from the article]

The Elettra synchrotron radiation facility in Trieste, Italy has been operating since 1994 and is currently the only facility operating at 2.0 or 2.4 GeV. Plans are underway to construct a new facility, Elettra 2.0, which will have improved capabilities and a wider range of experiments. The project was approved in 2017 and is expected to be operational in 2027, offering diverse beamlines for various energy ranges and advanced imaging and spectroscopy techniques. The construction will include 12 new beamlines and upgrades to existing ones. [Extracted from the article]

The National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center (NSRRC) celebrated its 30th anniversary in October 2023. The event brought together pioneers in the synchrotron radiation field, current and retired NSRRC staff, users, and government officials. The NSRRC has made significant contributions to Taiwan's synchrotron light source development, with the Taiwan Light Source (TLS) being the first synchrotron accelerator in Taiwan and the third globally. The NSRRC has also established collaborations with international research institutions and has expanded its engagements within and beyond the realm of science. The center aims to continue enhancing its facilities and infrastructure to support frontier scientific exploration. [Extracted from the article]

ALBA Synchrotron in Spain is currently undergoing an upgrade to become ALBA II, a 4th generation facility. The upgrade will involve expanding the storage ring, adding new beamlines, and renovating existing instrumentation. ALBA II aims to enhance research capabilities in areas such as life science, energy, and information technology, while also promoting collaboration and industrial innovation. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2031, with a focus on environmental sustainability and energy efficiency. Funding for the project has been provided by the Spanish Government, the Generalitat de Catalunya, and the European Union. [Extracted from the article]

This document provides an overview of the plans and developments for the software and computing infrastructure at Diamond, a synchrotron facility in the UK. The upcoming Diamond-II project will upgrade the facility and improve the brightness and coherence of synchrotron light. The article highlights the need for a new software architecture to meet the demands of the upgraded facility, including a service-based and web-technology-based paradigm. The upgrade will also involve adopting container-based deployment using Kubernetes and updating software development environments and processes. The goal is to enhance data processing, experiment orchestration, data analysis and visualization, information management, security and access control, and user interface, ultimately enabling transformative scientific research across various disciplines. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the development and implementation of a new beamline experiments control system called BLISS at the ESRF. BLISS aims to support the upgrade of the ESRF to the "Extremely Brilliant Source" (EBS), a 4th generation light source with increased brilliance and coherence of the X-ray beam. BLISS provides a modular architecture, a Python-based control system, centralized configuration and system-wide services, user-friendly configuration application, additional services, command line interface (CLI), classic shell, web terminal, asynchronous execution model, uniform hardware control, scanning engine, and decoupling of data acquisition and data saving. BLISS has been successfully deployed on over 30 beamlines and is planned to be adopted on all beamlines by 2025. The BLISS beamline control system effectively manages data storage and access for real-time processing, utilizing Redis as a buffer and dedicated writer processes for long-term storage. BLISS also includes various tools for file writing, memory management, and automation. The project follows industry best practices and releases new versions every 6 months. Overall, BLISS is a comprehensive and innovative beamline control system that supports a wide range of experiments at ESRF. [Extracted from the article]

The article provides an overview of the synchrotron radiation calculation code SPECTRA, which is used to evaluate the characteristics of synchrotron radiation. It discusses the history of the code's development, including challenges and limitations of earlier versions, and highlights new functions and improvements in the current version. The article also mentions special features of SPECTRA for beamline design. Additionally, the text discusses computational methods used to evaluate synchrotron radiation in a third-generation facility and introduces a simplified method for performing the coherent mode decomposition. The article concludes by mentioning that the SPECTRA code is available for use on the official website. [Extracted from the article]

The "Synchrotron Radiation Workshop" (SRW) code is a computer program developed by the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in 1997. It is used for simulating X-ray beamlines and coherence-exploiting experiments at synchrotron light sources. The code allows for the simulation of partially coherent wavefront propagation and the calculation of intensity distributions and coherence lengths. It has been used for electron beam diagnostics and offers brighter and more coherent X-ray beams for scientific experiments. The code is continuously developed and has interfaces with various software platforms. The article provides examples of simulations and mentions ongoing development and support from different organizations and research facilities. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the features and capabilities of the xrt python software library for modeling synchrotron sources and X-ray related material properties. It highlights recent advancements in the software, including the modeling of bent crystals, coherent modes, and wave propagation. The implementation of bent crystals allows for accurate ray tracing and reflectivity calculations, with improved performance using GPUs. The software also enables the study of coherent properties of partially coherent sources and the propagation of waves through optical systems. The document explores the concept of Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) of photons and its relationship to wave propagation, providing examples and comparisons of analytical and numerical wave propagation calculations. It concludes by mentioning different methods of obtaining a vortex beam and the importance of optics in preserving the vortex wavefront. The xrt software version 1.6.0 is referenced as the source of the recent developments discussed in the document. [Extracted from the article]

WP4: EOSC data analysis services for PaN national RIs The purpose of WP4 has been to provide photon and neutron users with the ability to find and run analysis workflows against the EOSC aligned data services. WP3: EOSC data catalogue services for PaN national RIs Metadata catalogues are a pivotal tool for EU photon and neutron national RIs and their users to implement open research data policies according to FAIR principles. Deliverable D4.4 described fully five challenging data analysis pipelines' implementation as remote data analysis services taking into account the needs of representative scientific communities while supporting the diversity of the institutions' existing computing infrastructures. Examples of those services are the data catalogues, the data portal, the training platform, various data analysis services and templates for data policies and DMSs. [Extracted from the article]

Synchrotron radiation (SR) has unique properties such as very high brilliance, a high coherence, a wide energy spectrum and, using specific optical elements (e.g., mirrors or lenses), can be focused to very small dimensions (< 1 µm). The NIS technique allows the determination of element-specific phonon density of states and provides Debye phonon average velocity (V SB D sb ), which together with density and bulk modulus enable calculations of compressional velocity (V SB P sb ) and shear velocity (V SB S sb ) of the materials under investigation [[30], [32]]. The high-brilliance X-ray absorption spectroscopy beamline ID24-DCM X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) present excellent probe techniques to study geomaterials, due to their element-selectivity, high sensitivity to concentration changes, and ability to characterize ordered and disordered structural environments. Prospecting for critical elements in natural samples: Ge in sphalerite ore deposits Germanium (Ge) is essential for high technologies such as optical fiber systems, infrared optics, polymerization catalyst, chemical therapy, electronics, and solar devices [[62]]. [Extracted from the article]

The annual users' meeting and workshops at Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) were held from June 9 to 10, 2015, attracting 175 attendees to Ithaca, NY. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

From the first initiatives [[1]] to the most recent developments of synchrotron-based techniques for the study of cultural and natural heritage materials, many synchrotron facilities have developed their own scientific programs in this field [[2]]. Ender to hard X-rays 3-23 keVMacro: 250 × 200 µm Micro: 5 to 10 µmXRF, XRD, DANES, DAFS, EXAFS, XANES imaging or punctual measurementsU X-ray tomography Synchrotron X-ray micro- and nanotomography allow the study of the detailed 3D morphology of bulk samples, with a spatial resolution that can go down to the sub-micrometer range for "standard" parallel-beam projection microtomography setups, and down to less than 50 nm in nano-tomography methods using more recent and more complex schemes, such as hard X-ray transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM). D micro spectral imaging with XRF, XANES, and XRD 3D computed tomography with absorption and phase contrast (in the future)T. [Extracted from the article]

Historically, solving the structure of a protein required deep knowledge of crystallography and the ability to produce protein crystals of suitable quality to generate high-quality diffraction data. At Diamond, AlphaFold2 has been embedded into its computational pipelines for academic users to create models specifically based on their target protein sequence (Figure 1), which are used in downstream automated structure solution pipelines run following data collection (Figures 2 and 3). An additional benefit of users providing sequences in ISPyB is that this information can be used for other decision-making processes in data collection and automated pipelines beyond its usage for generating models via AlphaFold2. [Extracted from the article]

The bending actuators are designed for easy adaptation for different mirror widths and thicknesses, and are very compact in the direction of the X-ray beam, so that the whole device is only 20 mm longer than the mirror substrate. The ALBA adaptive optics device The active optics system developed by ALBA (Figure 5) is essentially a mechanical mirror bender with point force actuators along the mirror length. The development of X-ray photon science has been characterized in the last few years by the development of free electron lasers and the so-called diffraction limited storage rings. The use of helicoidal springs enables the bender for an excellent dynamic range, and it is capable of applying forces up to 1 kN, with a below 1 mN, sufficient to ensure that the bender actuators can apply is 1,000 , enough to bend a flat mirror to curvatures below 100 m, with steps corresponding to a change of height below one nanometer. [Extracted from the article]

At NSLS-II, a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility located at Brookhaven National Laboratory, there have been many significant developments in the areas of user operations and commissioning in the past year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In June 2021, scientists celebrated the numerous achievements of a unique collaboration between researchers from the UK and Africa and the UK's national synchrotron, Diamond Light Source [[1]]. The highlight of the research was done by START PDRA Dr. Andani Mulelu, Angela Kirykowicz, and START Co-I Dr. Jeremy Woodward, who visualized a plant nitrilase and were able to explain and modify the substrate specificity of these enzymes. Creating an Africa Block Allocation Group (BAG) at Diamond with START-trained PDRAs assisting with the handling of samples. Here, START PDRAs Dr. Blake Balcomb and Dr. Anton Hamann design medicines to treat tuberculosis, malaria, and S. aureus infections using fragment-based drug discovery resources on the XChem beamline at Diamond. [Extracted from the article]

An engineer finally came to the NSRRC to install the OPA after going through a 72-hour preflight COVID-19 screening, a 14-day quarantine, a 7-day self-health monitoring, and another COVID-19 test done after the quarantine. In response to this global crisis and the government's fight against COVID-19, the National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center (NSRRC) is doing everything possible to support in users' efforts to continue their research. A local coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak emerged in late December 2019, and resulted in a formidable pandemic throughout the world, months later. [Extracted from the article]

The ALBA synchrotron is a 3.0 GeV light source situated 25 km northeast from the city of Barcelona (Spain; Fig. Another key point in adapting to the pandemic times has been ensuring good teleworking conditions for all ALBA employees and in addition equipping the beamlines with additional IT capabilities to ensure seamless connectivity between users and ALBA staff at the beamlines. The ALBA internal communication website is updated with the latest information and several webinars for all ALBA staff have been held during the past months. [Extracted from the article]

The Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory is preparing for a major upgrade, centered on installation of a multibend achromat (MBA) lattice that will dramatically improve the brightness, coherence, and stability of the X-ray beams. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The fourth international user workshop focusing on high-power lasers at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) was held in Menlo Park, CA, USA, on October 3–4, 2016 [1–3]. The workshop was co-organized by Los Alamos National Laboratory and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), and garnered the attendance of more than 110 scientists. Participants discussed the warm dense matter and high-pressure science that is being conducted using high-power lasers at the LCLS Matter in Extreme Conditions (MEC) endstation. During the past year, there have been seven journal articles published from research at the MEC instrument [4–10]. The specific topics discussed at this workshop were experimental highlights from the past year, current status and future commissioning of MEC capabilities, and future facility upgrades that will enable the expanded science reach of the facility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]