| Abstract: | More than 50 students, post-docs, and career scientists from US national laboratories, academic institutions, and the international user community participated in this four-day school, held from June 2–5, 2009, which delved deeply into theoretical and practical aspects of synchrotron X-ray spectroscopy. The fourth annual school on synchrotron techniques in environmental and materials sciences, organized by the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, was designed to introduce new and prospective users to theoretical underpinnings and capabilities of the techniques, data collection procedures, and data analysis approaches. More advanced topics, particularly in data analysis, were also discussed to reinforce and clarify important concepts that are fundamental to data interpretation. Although the school focused principally on applications in environmental and materials sciences, diverse and cross-cutting disciplinary backgrounds were represented, from environmental remediation science and geochemistry, to heterogeneous catalysis and bioinorganic chemistry, to materials sciences and applied physics. |
