This fall, the ForMAX beamline at MAX IV will go into operation, opening the door to new research opportunities. You are invited to join a series of free webinars to learn about the beamline and how to get access to the instrument. The first webinar is on September 14th 2022.
Developing next generation biostimulants using synchrotron X-rays
Arevo, a company known for producing environmentally friendly solutions for improved plant establishment and growth, has performed its first experiment at MAX IV. The research is focused on developing a new line of biostimulant products with a unique nutrient release profile, ensuring beneficial long-term effects for both plants and soils.
Unveiling the properties of a versatile 2D material for energy storage and production applications
Researchers from Linköping University and MAX IV have determined the detailed surface atomic arrangement of inherently formed termination species in an important class of two-dimensional materials known as MXene. The results have implications for the use of the material in energy storage and production applications.
Mapping the genetic tools of fungi for fuel production
Fungal enzymes play an important role in the breakdown of plant cell walls during plant degradation. An international collaboration of researchers explored the auxiliary activities 7 (AA7) enzyme family, characterizing four fungal enzymes and uncovering a novel class of flavo-enzymes, exemplified by oligosaccharide dehydrogenase. The enzymes fuel the activity of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) in the challenging process of crystalline cellulose degradation. The study, published in Nature Communications, offers promise for tuning the efficiency of enzymatic breakdown processes of biomass feedstocks used in energy and biomaterial production.
A fuel conversion process akin to photosynthesis
Researchers at Linköping University in Sweden are developing a promising new method to selectively convert carbon dioxide and water to various types of fuel. Driving this reaction is solar energy. The recent study, published in ACS Nano, combines the material graphene and the semiconductor cubic silicon carbide in a process which essentially mimics photosynthesis in plants.
Oxygen cycling reveals path to next-gen ferroelectric devices
Research is heating up to achieve greater fundamental understanding of the mechanism of ferroelectricity in hafnia-based materials, a crucial step in the development of next generation devices. New findings from the University of Groningen (RUG) in the journal Science define the key role of oxygen for greater miniaturization potential and structural stability beyond that of standard ferroelectric materials used in low-power memories. Electron microscopy and MAX IV’s NanoMAX beamline have illuminated the nature of polarization in thin films of hafnium zirconium oxide for ferroelectronics.
Modelling electrochemical potential for better Li-batteries
To understand the electrochemical potential of lithium-ion batteries, it’s important to decipher the chemical processes at electrode interfaces occurring during device activity. Using HIPPIE beamline, a research group investigated and modelled the influence of electrochemical potential differences in operando in these batteries.
Tackling SARS CoV-2 viral genome replication machinery using X-rays
An international collaboration between the UCL School of Pharmacy, the Lund Protein Production Platform (LP3) and ESS, through its DEMAX platform, have performed biophysical and structural studies of three non-structural proteins from the novel coronavirus, SARS CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19. In the spring of 2020, they managed to solve and started to analyse one of these proteins, Nsp10, by using the BioMAX beamline at MAX IV Laboratory. Early October published their results in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Clues to block replication of SARS-CoV-2 found with FragMAX platform
An international collaboration of scientists identified four fragments that interact with the nsp10 protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus using the FragMAX platform and BioMAX beamline. The fragments could be used to develop inhibitors that supplant key enzymes activated by the protein—an application which holds potential to block the viral replication process.
Exploring the structure of industrial polymers with the help of the CoSAXS beamline
People consume goods daily without realising the journey those products have been through before being displayed on store shelves. Everything involved in the production is a result of thorough R&D, even the eye-catching package of the products has gone through a substantial evolution. To this day, researchers are working on taking the packaging to the