Solutions for the storage and handling of SPINE standard pucks

Currently there is no rack system for the long‐term storage of SPINE pucks in spite of their commercial availability and heavy usage at the ESRF. The only way to store pucks is in transport dewar canisters which presents a number of limitations and drawbacks. Here a simple affordable rack for storing SPINE pucks is described, which we believe is accessible to not only synchrotrons but also both academic and industrial research laboratories.     

Nano-polycrystalline diamond anvils: key devices for XAS at extreme conditions: their use,scientific impact,present status and future needs

ABSTRACT

Nano-polycrystalline diamonds (NPDs) have become fundamental tools for cutting-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) studies at high P/T conditions that opened up new research directions by overcoming previous limitations. Indeed, NPDs yield a continuous and weak X-ray background signal which enables the collection of high-quality XAS data of materials compressed in diamond anvil cells. This is a critical advantage over the classically used single-crystal diamonds that generate strong parasitic signals (glitches) which render the analysis of XAS data in many cases impossible. In this contribution we give an overview of the impact and the scientific opportunities that NPDs opened up for extreme condition XAS spectroscopy at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility and discuss future needs.     

RixsToolBox: software for the analysis of soft X‐ray RIXS data acquired with 2D detectors

A software with a graphical user interface has been developed with the aim of facilitating the data analysis for users of a new resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering (RIXS) spectrometer installed at the ESRF beamline ID32. The software is organized in modules covering all relevant steps in the data reduction from a stack of several hundred two‐dimensional CCD images to a single RIXS spectrum. It utilizes both full charge integration and single‐photon centroiding to cope with high‐flux and high‐resolution requirements. Additional modules for further data analysis and the extraction of instrumental parameters are available. The software has been in routine use for about a year now and in that time many additional features have been incorporated. It now meets the users' need for an easy‐to‐use data analysis tool that allows looking at and understanding data as it is acquired and thus steering users' experiments more efficiently.     

ID29: a high‐intensity highly automated ESRF beamline for macromolecular crystallography experiments exploiting anomalous scattering

ID29 is an ESRF undulator beamline with a routinely accessible energy range of between 20.0 keV and 6.0 keV (λ = 0.62 Å to 2.07 Å) dedicated to the use of anomalous dispersion techniques in macromolecular crystallography. Since the beamline was first commissioned in 2001, ID29 has, in order to provide an improved service to both its academic and proprietary users, been the subject of almost continuous upgrade and refurbishment. It is now also the home to the ESRF Cryobench facility, ID29S. Here, the current status of the beamline is described and plans for its future are briefly outlined.     

A large‐solid‐angle X‐ray Raman scattering spectrometer at ID20 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility

An end‐station for X‐ray Raman scattering spectroscopy at beamline ID20 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility is described. This end‐station is dedicated to the study of shallow core electronic excitations using non‐resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering. The spectrometer has 72 spherically bent analyzer crystals arranged in six modular groups of 12 analyzer crystals each for a combined maximum flexibility and large solid angle of detection. Each of the six analyzer modules houses one pixelated area detector allowing for X‐ray Raman scattering based imaging and efficient separation of the desired signal from the sample and spurious scattering from the often used complicated sample environments. This new end‐station provides an unprecedented instrument for X‐ray Raman scattering, which is a spectroscopic tool of great interest for the study of low‐energy X‐ray absorption spectra in materials under in situ conditions, such as in operando batteries and fuel cells, in situ catalytic reactions, and extreme pressure and temperature conditions.     

Spectromicroscopy and internal photoemission spectroscopy of semiconductor interfaces

For decades, techniques based on synchrotron light sources have played a central role in solid interface research. This role has been recently enhanced by two factors: the commissioning of the third generation of sources, characterized by unprecedented levels of brightness, and the first utilization cases of another class of photon sources related to synchrotron facilities, the free electron lasers (FEL's). This review will first present some relevant examples of how the new facilities are changing the scene of interface research, most notably in the domain of spectromicroscopy. We will specifically illustrate how the crucial problem of the lateral fluctuations of interface properties is being attacked with both synchrotron-light and FEL techniques. Then, we will argue that the present applications are only marginally exploiting the amazing capabilities of the new sources. The main case to illustrate this point is coherence-sharpened x-ray imaging, a very promising and spectacular technique developed for medical radiology, which could find extremely interesting applications in interface research.     

A high‐energy‐resolution resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering spectrometer at ID20 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility

An end‐station for resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering and (resonant) X‐ray emission spectroscopy at beamline ID20 of ESRF – The European Synchrotron is presented. The spectrometer hosts five crystal analysers in Rowland geometry for large solid angle collection and is mounted on a rotatable arm for scattering in both the horizontal and vertical planes. The spectrometer is optimized for high‐energy‐resolution applications, including partial fluorescence yield or high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detected X‐ray absorption spectroscopy and the study of elementary electronic excitations in solids. In addition, it can be used for non‐resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering measurements of valence electron excitations.