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Microscopy experiment breaks x-ray record
A record-setting x-ray microscopy experiment may
have ushered in a new era for nanoscale imaging, accord-
ing to researchers at the DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley Na-
tional Laboratory, Calif. The scientists used low energy
or “soft” x-rays to image structures only five nm in size.
This resolution, obtained at Berkeley Lab’s Advanced
Light Source (ALS), is reportedly the highest ever
achieved with x-ray microscopy.
Using ptychography, a coherent diffractive imaging
technique based on high-performance scanning trans-
mission x-ray microscopy (STXM), the team was able to
map the chemical composition of lithium iron phosphate
nanocrystals after partial dilithiation. Results yield important new insights into a material
of high interest for electrochemical energy storage.
“We have developed diffractive imaging methods capable of achieving a spatial resolu-
tion that cannot be matched by conventional imaging schemes,” says ALS physicist David
Shapiro. “We are now entering a stage in which our x-ray microscopes are no longer lim-
ited by our optics and we can image at nearly the wavelength of our x-ray light.” lbl.gov.
Spray-on sensors let airplanes feel damage
A unique system that allows airplanes to “feel” damage in a way similar to human skin
is in development by British defense contractor BAE Systems. The technology works by
covering the plane’s body with tens
of thousands of micro-sensors able
to detect problems before they
occur. The devices could measure
wind speed, temperature, strain,
and movement. Senior research sci-
entist Lydia Hyde says the idea
came to her while watching her
tumble dryer, which uses a sensor
to prevent overheating.
“Observing how a simple sensor
can be used to stop a domestic ap-
pliance from overheating got me
thinking about how this could be
applied to my work and how we could replace bulky, expensive sensors with cheap, minia-
ture, multi-functional ones,” says Hyde. “This led to the idea that aircraft could be covered
by thousands of these, creating a smart skin that can sense the world around them and de-
tect stress, heat, or damage.”
The sensors, possibly as small as dust particles and with their own power
source, could even be sprayed onto aircraft like paint, according to BAE.
.
Studying glass under stress
Glass has many applications that call for different properties, such as re-
sistance to thermal shock or chemically harsh environments. Glassmakers
commonly use additives such as boron oxide to tweak these properties by
changing the atomic structure. Now researchers at the University of California,
Davis, have captured atoms in borosilicate glass flipping from one structure
briefs
Junzhou Huang, a University of
Texas at Arlington computer and
data scientist, won a $250,000
National
Science
Foundation
(NSF) grant to
develop a
scalable
data-mining
framework that
will help
manufacturers quickly discover
desired materials for building their
products. Huang will design
scalable algorithms and a
computational framework that can
search unprecedented volumes of
data detailing the complete set of
genes present in numerous
materials. He is teaming with the
Colorado School of Mines on the
research, funded by a total NSF
award of $500,000 over three
years. The grant is part of the
national Materials Genome
Initiative. .
Laboratory Testing Inc., Hatfield,
Pa., added moisture analysis to its
extensive offering of materials
testing services. The test is
performed on a fully computerized
Leco RC612 analyzer that reveals
the percentage of moisture in a
wide variety of inorganic materials,
including welding flux, ores,
ferroalloys, and chemical samples.
Moisture Analysis is A2LA
accredited to ISO 17025, and test
procedures conform to AWS A4.4 M,
MIL-E-23765/2E, and EB 4906
Rev A. .
ADVANCED MATERIALS & PROCESSES • OCTOBER 2014 10
TESTING CHARACTERIZATION
news
industry
David Shapiro with the STXM
instrument at ALS beamline
5.3.2.1. Courtesy of Roy
Kaltschmidt.
Sensors on military planes could warn engineers of
potential problems. Courtesy of BAE Systems.
Researchers at UC Davis have for the first time captured atoms in borosilicate glass
flipping from a flat triangular configuration with three oxygen atoms around one boron to
a tetrahedron, via a pyramidal intermediate. Courtesy of UC Davis.