Scientific Highlights

Phase fractions in Ti-6Al-4V-3Fe

In situ alloying during additive manufacturing

In situ alloying is an effective method to engineer microstructures of additively manufactured Ti6Al4V3Fe alloys. 

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Alexander Grimm wins 2022 Nicholas Kurti prize

We are happy to announce that Alex has been awarded the 2022 Nicholas Kurti Science prize. The prize recognises his work on non-linear effects in Josephson junctions for quantum information processing.

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Into the fourth dimension: time-resolved soft X-ray laminography

Combining time-resolved soft X-ray STXM imaging with magnetic laminography, researchers were able to investigate magnetization dynamics in a ferromagnetic microstructure resolved in all three spatial dimensions and in time. Thanks to the possibility of freely selecting the frequency of the excitation applied to the magnetic element, this technique opens the possibility to investigate resonant magneto-dynamical processes, such as e.g. magnetic vortex core gyration and switching, and spinwave emission.

Hercules School 2022 group photo

Hercules School 2022

PSI hosted again the Hercules School in March 2022. We had the pleasure to welcome 20 international PhD students, PostDocs and scientists to demonstrate our state-of-the-art techniques and methodologies at our large scale facilities, the Swiss Light Source (SLS), the Swiss Spallation Neutron Source (SINQ) and our free electron laser SwissFEL.

The secret life of an electromagnon

Light springs and magnetic vortices: a new kind of dichroism

In contrast to circular dichroism that is dependent on the polarization, helicoidal dichroism induced by a twisted wave front profile is scarcely known. The first evidence of magnetic helicoidal dichroism has now been observed in an experiment using Spiral Fresnel Zone Plates developed at the Paul Scherrer Institut.

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Lighting up the appealing world of hybrid perovskites

Researchers from Italy, in collaboration with the Paul Scherrer Institut, successfully used the macromolecular crystallography beamline X06DA-PXIII at the Swiss Light Source to characterize promising perovkites materials used in solar cells and other photodetector devices.