Feature Articles

Advances in automation, robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) are transforming how research is done at NSLS-II, streamlining workflows, enhancing productivity, and alleviating workloads for both users and staff.

A technique called resonant inelastic X-ray scattering, or RIXS, is particularly suited for probing samples as thin as one atomic layer and material states that change very rapidly. With recent technological developments, researchers expect this technique to enable studies that were unthinkable only five years ago. This progress gave Mark Dean and three colleagues — Matteo Mitrano, Steven Johnston, and Young-June Kim — the impetus to chart where the field is going as a whole. So, they summarized the technique’s state of the art and how they expect the field to progress in a Perspective paper, recently published in Physical Review X.

Kevin Yager, the Electronic Nanomaterials group leader at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN), has articulated an overarching vision for the role of AI in scientific research. It’s called a science exocortex — “exo” meaning outside and “cortex” referencing the information processing layer of the human brain. Rather than simple chatbots and scientific assistants, the conceptualized exocortex will be an extension of a scientist’s brain. Researchers will interact with it through conversation, without the need for any invasive brain-computer interfaces.

UPTON, N.Y. — With one-of-a-kind research facilities leveraged by scientists from across the nation and around the world, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory is a veritable city of science. Each year brings discoveries, from the scale of subatomic particles to the vastness of Earth’s atmosphere and the cosmos, that have the potential to power new technologies and provide solutions to major societal challenges. Here, the Lab presents, in no particular order, its top 10 discoveries of 2024 … plus a few major Brookhaven Lab milestones.

To increase awareness of quantum opportunities and help grow the U.S. quantum workforce, the Co-design Center for Quantum Advantage (C²QA) hosts and co-hosts educational programs that introduce students to the foundational principles of QIS and foster the development of skills needed for a successful career in this rapidly expanding field.

The programs held this year, including the QIS & Engineering High School-Level Program, QIS 102: Quantum Computing Summer School, and QIS 303: Quantum Error Mitigation, reached more than 170 participants worldwide, from students who just completed their first year of high school to full-fledged QIS researchers — and enthusiastic learners from every level of expertise in between.

When building a one-of-a-kind particle collider filled with groundbreaking technologies, it's extremely helpful to have a place to test things out. Thankfully that's the case for the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory, where physicists are using the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) to test key accelerator strategies for a new state-of-the-art Electron-Ion Collider (EIC).

Meet NSLS-II Vacuum Group Leader Robert Todd and learn about the crucial role high-tech vacuum systems play in maintaining ultra-bright X-ray light for cutting-edge scientific research.

Over two days in June, 29 graduate students, faculty members, and administrators from minority serving institutions (MSIs) across the country gathered at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory for the Faculty Outreach for Quantum-Invested UniversitieS (FOQUS) program.

Co-hosted by the Co-design Center for Quantum Advantage (C²QA) and Brookhaven Lab’s Office of Educational Programs, the program offered participants tours of several facilities supporting quantum innovation at Brookhaven Lab and opportunities to network with the researchers — and each other — to explore potential collaborations.

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have designed and tested the world’s highest voltage polarized electron gun, a key piece of technology needed for building the world’s first fully polarized Electron-Ion Collider (EIC). The EIC, a state-of-the-art nuclear physics facility being built at Brookhaven in partnership with DOE’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (Jefferson Lab), will accelerate and collide polarized electrons with polarized protons and ions — atoms stripped of their electrons — so scientists can investigate the innermost building blocks of visible matter.