Department of Synchrotron Experimental Stations

The Microfocus experimental station investigates the internal structure of objects at the micro level by focusing X-rays to micron and submicron sizes. The objects of research are works of art, objects of cultural heritage, solid-state samples of mineralogical, geological and archaeological origin. Certification of various elements and schemes of focusing X-ray optics can be carried out at the station. The research results are in demand in the nuclear industry (tomography of fuel particles), microelectronics (tomography of microcircuits with submicron resolution, studies of residual stresses of chips), biomedicine (such weakly contrasted samples as the brain), as well as in the field of humanities (study of the composition of ancient paintings, sculptures, ceramics, petroglyphs).

Nanodiagnostics of various objects, including near-surface layers, thin films, interfaces, multilayer structures, semiconductor superlattices and structures with quantum dots, are carried out at the Faza experimental station using a unique set of diffraction and phase-sensitive techniques. The station's capabilities allow us to study the processes of defect formation, as well as to study the real structure of crystals. The advantages of the station are widely in demand in materials science, micro- and nanoelectronics, and X-ray optics. Obtaining new knowledge about materials at the nanoscale makes it possible to optimize the technological processes of forming nanosystems, manage their properties and control their quality. The results of the research conducted at the station can be used in the development of new materials with specified parameters (including composite materials and organo-inorganic, hybrid systems). Such materials can be a basic platform for creating fundamentally new devices and devices with improved characteristics. Therefore, research at the station is potentially interesting for industry: microelectronics, instrumentation, metallurgy, mechanical engineering, energy and space technologies.

Biomedical and materials science diagnostics of objects using 2D and 3D visualization are carried out at the experimental station "Median". At the station, you can study in detail the internal structure of objects ranging in size from 10 to 50 millimeters with a resolution that allows you to consider in detail structural features up to 15 micrometers (thousandths of a millimeter) in size. Here, using synchrotron radiation, a 3D picture of the internal structure of objects of interest to both biomedical and socio-humanitarian sciences is created. For example, scientists conduct tomographic studies of fossil animals, archaeological artifacts, and cultural heritage sites. The use of imaging methods based on the refraction of radiation in the sample (refractive or phase contrast introscopy) can significantly reduce the radiation load on the sample, which opens up additional opportunities for in vitro studies of biological objects. The station is studying the effect of drugs on the shape and volume of oncological neoplasms. Studies of the internal structure and mechanical stresses in crystalline materials are important in developing the technology of crystal growth used in various products. The methods implemented at the station make it possible to non-destructively study the real structure of crystalline elements in their operating conditions, without removing them from the devices and systems in which they are used.

The BioMUR experimental station makes it possible to determine the structure of biological objects in the state in which they are in the human or animal body. Bio- and synthetic polymers, solutions of proteins and biological macromolecules, fibrillar structures, lipid nanostructures and nanostructures in solids are successfully studied at the station. In addition, the station can conduct unique studies of the molecular and nanostructural dynamics of biological tissues under the influence of external electromagnetic and temperature influences. The main area of applied research conducted at the station is related to biomedicine. The methods implemented at the station make it possible to study the structural organization of complex disordered objects and systems: protein molecules, polymers and other objects of practical importance for medicine. The methods of studying samples in solution open up the possibility of conducting studies of biological objects in natural conditions.

The unique X-ray optical scheme of the Langmuir experimental station allows X-ray studies of the structure of thin films on the surface of a liquid. Here you can study, for example, the effect of an anti-cancer drug on the human cell membrane or the process of self-assembly of a monolayer (a layer one atom thick) of molecules with prospects for application to create organic coatings of solar panels. The methods implemented at the experimental station make it possible to determine, with an accuracy of up to thousandths of an Angstrom, the profile of the distribution of atoms along the depth of the structure, the crystal structure of two-dimensional systems, and the chemical composition of near-surface layers. This makes the station in demand among scientific groups investigating the processes of self-organization of low-dimensional nanosystems, and groups developing new ways of targeted drug delivery into the body. Surface-sensitive X-ray techniques implemented at the station allow obtaining information about the elemental composition and structural organization of dynamic two-dimensional objects, which is necessary in the development of new hybrid systems for nanoelectronics, energy, artificial intelligence devices and biomedical research.

The electronic structure of matter is being investigated at the NanoFES experimental photoelectron spectroscopy station. By analyzing the spectra of photoelectrons knocked out of a sample by a synchrotron radiation beam, it is possible to determine in what state these electrons were in the object under study and, as a result, the structure of the electronic levels of the atoms that make up the sample. It is the electronic structure of the objects around us that determines all their properties: color, hardness, chemical activity, electrical conductivity, etc. Knowledge about the electronic structure allows you to better understand the nature of certain properties of a substance, develop ways to change these properties in a directed way, as well as create new objects and systems with unique characteristics.

A unique synchrotron station that allows conducting experiments on the structural diagnosis of crystalline samples using single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction. In fact, as a result of the experiment at this station, it receives a high-resolution three-dimensional image of the distribution of atoms in a crystalline material of any nature, whether it is a promising material for microelectronics or a human protein. The use of synchrotron radiation for conducting this type of experiments makes it possible to obtain high-quality structural data in the shortest possible time. A large number of experiments are conducted daily at the station to determine the 3D atomic structure and phase composition of various substances. The use of diffraction techniques makes it possible to study samples from such fields of science and technology as structural chemistry, biology, physics of magnetic and superconducting materials, ecology, archaeology, cultural heritage sites, materials for hydrogen energy.