releaselogo.gif (3134 bytes)

For release: June 26, 2000

Contacts:
Alan Goldman, Condensed Matter Physics, (515) 294-5441
Saren Johnston, Ames Lab Public Affairs, (515) 294-3474

AMES LABORATORY EFFORTS PAY OFF -- BEAM LINE IS OPERATIONAL

Researchers are doing science and adding equipment now that new beam line is up and running

AMES, Iowa -- These are busy and exciting days for Alan Goldman, a senior physicist at the U. S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory and chair of the Iowa State University physics and astronomy department. At last he has access to some of the most powerful X-ray beams in the world -- beams that will allow him and other scientists to investigate the molecular makeup of all kinds of materials, ranging from magnets, ceramics and soils to proteins, drugs and asteroid dust.

After 10 years of planning, problem-solving and construction, the undulator beam line developed by the Midwest Universities Collaborative Access Team is now supplying strong, highly focused X-ray beams to MUCAT researchers at the Advanced Photon Source, located at DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory near Chicago. The APS electron storage ring generates synchrotron radiation, which it sheds in the form of the brilliant X-rays.

"The beam line is operational, and we’re at the point where we’re taking data, getting results and writing papers," said an enthusiastic Goldman, who heads the MUCAT, a group of scientists from eight Midwestern universities and one German institute. The team was organized in 1990 to develop the undulator beam line for one of the 35 sectors making up the APS experimental hall.

"The APS is an incredibly versatile tool that lets you see microscopic details of materials with extremely high resolution," said Goldman. "It can be used by almost any group interested in looking at the structure of materials."

The new MUCAT undulator beam line consists of two experimental stations that operate in tandem. And those stations are quickly filling up with the kinds of equipment that can take advantage of the powerful APS X-rays and allow Goldman and his Ames Lab colleagues -- Doug Robinson, Eric Zoellner and Didier Wermeille -- to carry on a diverse assortment of research projects.

The researchers are already using a four-circle diffractometer to perform magnetic X-ray scattering measurements that will help them better determine the magnetic structure of various materials. And the remarkable success of aninnovative compact furnace currently being tested at the beam line may keep the new Ames Lab technology in big demand.

The compact furnace was designed to fit on the four-circle diffractometer to take advantage of the strong X-rays funneled through the undulator beam line.  The furnace allows high-temperature and high-energy powder diffraction studies of complex materials at various temperatures, while maintaining the same processing conditions that exist inthe laboratory environment. The resulting diffraction patterns reveal what happens to the crystal structure as a material heats and cools, information critical to better understanding and controlling the microstructure of new materials.

Coming on-line at the beam line is a novel piece of equipment that is one of only a few in the world. The liquid surface reflectometer developed by Ames Lab physicist David Vaknin will be used in conjunction with the APS X-rays to investigate the structure of ultrathin layers of organic materials that may one day be used in novel optical, electronic and biological devices.

Goldman is anticipating a hectic summer, one which will require the expert problem-solving skills of Robinson, Zoellner and Wermeille as new equipment for the MUCAT beam line arrives, is installed and begins to operate.

"Doug and Eric have been at the beam line since the beginning of its construction and have been vital to its success," said a grateful Goldman, who commutes between Ames and Argonne on a regular basis. He adds that Didier, a postdoctoral fellow in his group, has also been instrumental in the development of the beam line during the two years he’s worked on the project. "They’re the people who make the whole thing work, along with Laura Morisco, the MUCAT secretary, whom we all depend on," he said.

In addition to the equipment already in place in the MUCAT sector at the APS, this summer will see the construction of a new surface science chamber funded by the National Science Foundation. The chamber will be used to study the surface properties of new materials and surfaces that are grown in-situ using a variety of techniques.

A high-energy side station funded and constructed by the German institute, F.Z. Juelich, a MUCAT member, will operate in parallel with the undulator beam line, although it will supply X-rays with energies of up to 120 kilovoltscompared with the beam line’s lower energies of 3-40 kilovolts.

"The high-energy range is for experiments in which we want to penetrate into the sample more deeply, while the beam line’s low-energy range will help us with magnetic scattering studies on actinide materials," explained Goldman.

Goldman and his co-workers are swamped this summer, but it’s a good kind of swamped. And recently it got even better. "We’ve been funded to build a bending magnet beam line, which will complement the undulator line and allow a wide variety of standard scattering and spectroscopy techniques to be used," he said. "Construction on the second beam line will begin this summer."

Goldman credits Ames Laboratory for backing the MUCAT project beginning with the 1990 initial planning stages -- before the APS was even built. "The Lab’s support over the years has been just outstanding," he said. "The APS is a remarkable tool for synchrotron X-ray studies for the general scientific community. And we’re going to welcome anyone to come out there and do some work."

Ames Laboratory is operated for the Department of Energy by Iowa State University. The Lab conducts research into various areas of national concern, including energy resources, high-speed computer design, environmental cleanup and restoration, and the synthesis and study of new materials.

Note to reporters: Following is a complete list of MUCAT members: Ames Laboratory/Iowa State University; University of Missouri, Columbia; Washington University; SUNY Stony Brook; University of Wisconsin; Michigan State University; Kent State University; Georgia Tech; and F. Z. Juelich.

Back to News Release Index

Last revision: 6/23/00 dbm

Home | Disclaimer