Structure of materials

Synopsis

The Structure of Materials Group provides facilities for a range of X-ray scattering, imaging and spectroscopy experiments, relevant to the fields of energy research, catalysis, engineering, metallurgy, electronics, semiconductors, MEMs, nanoscience and other elements of advanced technology, along with aspects of fundamental structural physics and chemistry. The introduction to the group's chapter in the annual ESRF Highlights gives an overview of some recent accomplishments.

Techniques

• Structural studies by diffraction and scattering from crystalline, polycrystalline, defective and glassy materials, including anomalous scattering
• Grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction and small-angle scattering, as well as X-ray reflectivity, from surfaces and interfaces
• Dynamic, time-resolved and in-situ studies
• Fast microtomography and coherent diffraction imaging
• X-ray standing waves and hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

ID11 is a high-energy beamline with decanano-focussing capabilities, allowing sub-micron grain mapping by diffraction or tomography, time-resolved studies on the millisecond timescale, and single-crystal diffraction on micron-sized samples. ID15A and ID15B provide very high energy X-rays, up to several hundred keV. They offer diffraction, interfacial reflectivity and fast imaging tools for in-situ studies of working devices. ID31 is optimised to provide high-resolution powder diffraction data over a wide X-ray energy range. Beamlines ID01, ID03 and ID32 offer a variety of techniques and sample environments for the study and analysis of surfaces, near-surface structures and buried interfaces on the atomic to micrometre length scales. The facilities are ideally suited to the study of samples relevant to future developments in catalysis, advanced electronics, nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Industrial applications

The ESRF’s mission includes interacting with and supporting European industry. Synchrotron X-rays permit analysis of industrial products under real conditions of manufacture and use, often in real time. The following are some examples of applications possible at beamlines in the structure of materials group:

• Characterisation of pharmaceutical polymorphs
• Investigation of heterogeneous catalysts under in operando conditions
• Mapping of residual strain and microstructure in engineering components
• Investigations of buried semiconductor and device interfaces
• Investigation of alloy corrosion
• Investigation of coatings, nanoparticles and surface contamination

The individuals listed above and the staff of the Industrial and Commercial Unit are available to help industrial researchers identify appropriate resources at the ESRF.

In-house research

In-house research runs in parallel to beamline operation, helping us to develop and refine techniques while investigating diverse scientific areas. Staff within the Structure of Materials Group have ongoing research projects in several areas:

• Solid-state chemistry, phase changes, chemical crystallography, hydrogen storage
• Heterogeneous catalysis, reactions at surfaces
• Surface and interfacial crystallography and spectroscopy
• Metallurgy, microstructure, mapping of residual strain
• Development of analytical methods for grain mapping and reconstruction
• Liquid-solid interfaces, electrochemistry, growth and corrosion
• X-ray standing wave investigations of bulk impurities (e.g. in semiconductors, zeolites).