The Australian Synchrotron (AS) is a critical piece of research infrastructure. The synchrotron beamlines house high-end research facilities which simply cannot be replicated in a normal laboratory. In recent years several technologies have enabled instruments that close the gap to the synchrotron. Instruments that can easily be incorporated into onsite laboratories open up new research opportunities. In this article we take a look at some of these systems.
While the benefits to research of these facilities are undeniable, sometimes access can be an issue. Their sheer size and expense means we only have one in Australia. Unfortunately, running experiments can be cost prohibitive, while availability and logistics can also provide barriers.
Synchrotron Alternatives
While the power of a synchrotron may not be able to be replicated there are lab-based systems available that produce and utilise high intensity X-rays. These systems can provide data that results in similar analyses or can be a highly capable way of screening samples, helping you to decide which are the most important ones to measure at the synchrotron.
X-Ray Diffraction
XRD has been a staple technique for materials identification and analysis. Most commercially available systems use sealed X-ray tubes and are rated at 3kW, but don’t normally operate above 1.6kW (i.e. 40kV and 40mA). The Rigaku SmartLab using uses a Rotating Anode X-ray generator and can operate continuously at 9kW, producing almost 6 times more usable flux with the addition of purpose-design optics. Despite its higher power output it is no bigger than 3kW systems.
This system retains the same architecture as lower powered system, enabling it to run all the same experiments. The higher X-ray flux available with the SmartLab 9kW just means it can do it faster, resulting in higher throughputs, with a better chance of identifying trace components, especially when coupled with high-speed detectors like the HyPix range that use Hybrid pixel area detector (HPAD) technology. Given the life expectancy of a diffractometer, installing a system like this also better prepares your lab for future experiments on materials that you may have never thought of.
Similarly for crystallography researchers, in particular those working on single crystals, the Synergy-R from Rigaku Oxford Diffraction uses the same Rotating Anode technology and can also be married to high speed HPAD detectors for maximum sensitivity and throughput.
Dynamic Micro Computed Tomography
While many lab-based micro-CT systems are able to carry out time lapse studies, continuous dynamic studies, also known as 4D CT are unique to the TESCAN DynaTOM. Previously restricted to the realms of synchrotrons, recent advances in X-ray source and detector technologies, combined with a unique gantry architecture and more intelligent software, the TESCAN DynaTOM is able to continuously scan samples under dynamic conditions, ensuring any specific event is not missed.
Dynamic studies allow researchers and engineers to understand how materials behave under conditions that more closely resemble real life operating scenarios e.g. changing loads, flow or environments such as temperature. Such studies can rapidly accelerate the development pathway for a wide variety of engineering components.
Angle Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy
ARPES is a surface sensitive analytical technique which, until recently, had also been only possible at the synchrotron. With advances in laser technology, the KM Labs Hyperion Vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV) and EUV sources with ultrafast femtosecond pulses, tuneable wavelengths and photon energy only previously possible at synchrotrons can be used as the basis for a lab-based system.
When paired with a suitable detector, ARPES (both spin and time resolved) is now a reality in a lab-sized system where it can aid in the development of solar cells, photocathodes and catalysis to spintronics, topological materials and quantum technologies.
Summary
While The Australian Synchrotron has a defined place in Australian research, there are many systems that are currently available that bridge the gap between it and other common lab-based instruments. By incorporating more of these in research institutions, it is feasible that research outcomes could be accelerated. Whether these synchrotron alternatives produce high enough quality data, or simply act a screening tool for future synchrotron experiments they could potentially also reduce our reliance n the synchrotron.