In an interdisciplinary study led by the Natural History Museum in Bern, researchers were able to decipher the origin of the material used for a Bronze Age arrowhead. The iron used came from a meteorite. The complex analysis of the archaeological object was carried out using, among other methods, the Swiss Muon Source SμS at PSI.
Researchers at PSI and the University of Barcelona have managed to explain the strange behaviour of microgels. Their measurements using neutron beams have pushed this measuring technique to its limits. The results open up opportunities for new applications in materials and pharmaceutical research.
Researchers at PSI have joined forces with employees of the technology transfer centre, ANAXAM, and the industrial partner Audi Sport to shed light on a potential sticking point: they have used neutrons to examine a brake calliper in action and reveal ways of optimising it.
Using advanced neutron scattering, researchers have probed the magnetic band structures in a crystal of chromium tribromide, revealing a complex magnetic topology.
Spins tick-tock like a grandfather clock and then stop. Thanks to complementary experiments at the Swiss Muon Source SµS, Swiss Spallation Neutron Source SINQ and the Swiss Light Source SLS, researchers led by the University of Geneva have discovered this coveted characteristic, known as magnetic crossover, hidden within the magnetic landscape of an exotic layered material. Magnetic crossover means tuneability and with it promise for spin-based electronics.
Aggregates of amyloid beta- (Aβ-)peptide, known as fibrils, are one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease and play a key role in the sequence of events leading to dementia symptoms. Using small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering, researchers from Lund University and the Paul Scherrer Institut have determined the detailed structure of Aβ42-fibril, obtaining important information to design future therapeutics.
New research published in Science brings us a step closer to magnonic devices and quantum computing. Neutron analysis has revealed the behaviour of magnetic waves in a class of materials, enabling scientists to picture a future where electronic currents no longer cause our devices to heat up.
Scientists at the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL), in collaboration with the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI), the Institut de Biologie Structurale (IBS) and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), have published new data on how the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein interacts with mammalian lung cell membranes allowing the viral RNA to enter human cells.
Perovskite oxynitride materials can act as effective photocatalysts for water splitting driven by visible light. A combined neutron and x-ray study now provides unique insight into the underlying processes at the solid–liquid interface and highlights how solar-to-hydrogen conversion can be improved.
With experimental work demonstrating that the correlated ground state of the pyrochlore system Ce2Sn2O7 is a quantum liquid of magnetic octupoles, an international team led by PSI researcher Romain Sibille establishes a fundamentally new state of matter: higher-rank multipole ice.
