Exploring the structure of functional materials

Visiting the Australian Synchrotron

It was a pleasure to visit the Australian Synchrotron today. During our visit, we presented our research and toured the beamlines. Last but not least, we explored Melbourne’s southeastern suburbs and the area around Monash University.

Beamtime at the Swiss-Norwegian Beamlines

We are performing an experiment at the mighty Swiss-Norwegian Beamlines at the European Synchrotron in Grenoble. All eyes and ears are on Dmitry Chernyshov.

On our way to Grenoble

We are on our way to Grenoble, France! A week-long synchrotron experiment with plenty of X-ray photons, data and food lies ahead. We are already starting with the last item on that list at the airport. Our long journey takes us via Istanbul and Geneva.

Powder diffraction experiments at SESAME

We are at SESAME in Allan, Jordan, today. After spending a day exploring Amman, we are preparing for a multi-temperature powder diffraction experiment at the MS beamline. Meanwhile, we are enjoying the cool weather, beautiful views and plenty of food.

A glimpse inside the lab

Not really news, but a nice view of the lab! The red light is on and data collection is under way. Nobel Prize? Maybe tomorrow!

Welcome, Yair Dror

We welcome Yair Dror, our new laboratory engineer. He will spend half of his time with us and the other half with Dr Maxim Sokol’s ceramics laboratory. We wish Yair a smooth start and many successful and enjoyable years of work. And, of course, we wish him good health during these challenging times.

A new analyzer for time-resolved diffraction

The wait is over: the multichannel analyzer for time-resolved X-ray diffraction experiments with a point detector has arrived. It was developed by our former colleagues at the University of Siegen. It is great to see an old friend.

A closer look at our X-ray beam

Here is the beam as it emerges from the X-ray microfocus source and parabolic X-ray mirror. The spots on the right and left contain the K_α and K_β lines, respectively. The K_β line can be eliminated with a pinhole, while K_α1 will be selected by the monochromator. More details will appear in an upcoming paper.

A visit from Prof Natalia Dubrovinskaya

We have a very special guest today: Prof Natalia Dubrovinskaya from the University of Bayreuth, where she leads research in Materials Physics and Technology at Extreme Conditions. We thank Natalia for her insightful seminar, “Materials synthesis and crystallography at extreme pressure-temperature conditions.”

Reciprocal space reflected in the detector

The “reality” of reciprocal space: an X-ray diffraction pattern reflected from the surface of the detector. Nothing unusual, just a beautiful image.

Studying crystals under electric fields

Our time-resolved X-ray diffraction measurements under an external electric field continue. Does this material have a chance to become the new “star” of piezoelectricity? If so, why? We will get the answer soon.

First electric-field experiments in the lab

Another milestone to celebrate in the lab: our first laboratory-based experiments on crystals under an electric field have begun. This time, we are performing test measurements of the piezoelectric coefficient of a quartz single crystal. The PILATUS detector is synchronized with the applied electric field using this methodology.

New paper accepted in Applied Physics Letters

Our new paper has been accepted for publication in Applied Physics Letters. The work resulted from an earlier beamtime at the ID22 beamline of the European Synchrotron. It was led by our major collaborators Dr Christopher Fancher from ORNL and Prof Jacob Jones from NCSU, USA.

Crystallography of cleavage: our first paper

We are happy to announce that our first article on crystallography of cleavage in functional materials has been published in the latest issue of Acta Materialia. This work resulted from our collaboration with Prof Dov Sherman and his brittle fracture laboratory.

Research during the lockdown

During the COVID-19 outbreak, our lives are dominated by self-isolation, Zoom meetings and online teaching. The laboratory is closed and experiments are suspended. This period may nevertheless be useful for analytical research, data analysis and revisiting older, unpublished algorithms.

New photographs of our laboratory

A few colorful photographs of our laboratory are now available here. Special thanks to Limor Ben Moshe for the excellent photography.

Mapping reciprocal space with CrysAlisPro

We can now use CrysAlisPro software to search for and index reflections in single-crystal diffraction data. The reciprocal-space reconstruction from a Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃ crystal shows that even diffuse X-ray scattering is detectable.

Presenting at ECM32 in Vienna

We are on our way to Vienna for ECM32, the European Crystallographic Meeting. Dr S. Gorfman will give a talk, and U. Vaknin will present a poster. We are looking forward to it!

Late nights on campus

Sometimes it is necessary to work late, especially when another important conference is approaching. At least the night views across the Tel Aviv University campus are relaxing and beautiful.

Ferroelectrics research in Lausanne

It is summer conference time! At the International Meeting on Applications of Ferroelectrics in Lausanne, Switzerland, Dr Gorfman will give invited and contributed talks, while Dr Spirito will present a poster.

Diffractometer installation complete

The installation is now complete! Several intensive weeks of work with the wonderful Youli Li from Forvis Technologies are over, and our X-ray diffractometer is almost ready for its research challenges.

Support from the US-Israel Binational Science Foundation

We have received a positive response from the US-Israel Binational Science Foundation. For three years beginning in October 2019, the foundation will support our collaborative research with Dr Igor Levin from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The work will focus on elucidating the local structure and disorder in functional ferroelectric oxides.

Exploring high scattering angles

The real crystallography begins when the X-ray detector can move to a high scattering angle relative to the incident beam. Our custom-built instrument is certainly able to do that.

Aligning our first crystal

Every X-ray crystallographer knows the excitement of mounting a new sample on a diffractometer. It is even more exciting when the instrument has just been installed and this is its first alignment.

First image from the PILATUS detector

The PILATUS 1M X-ray area detector is switched on, and the honor of producing its first image goes to a cosmic ray! Cosmic particles are everywhere, and there is no way to hide from them. During this 100-second exposure, the detector captured several of their characteristic streaks.

Assembling the diffractometer

At the end of the first installation day, the instrument components have been lifted onto the optical table. Setting up the communication channels, routing cables through the ceiling, and switching on the source and detectors come next.

Installing the goniometer

The installation moves forward! The goniometer has been lifted onto the table. There is still a long way to go: we must set up the X-ray source, monochromator chamber, detectors and communication cables.

Diffractometer installation begins

This is a truly historic moment: installation of the X-ray diffractometer begins! The four-circle goniometer, a key part of the instrument, enters the lab.

Our diffractometer arrives

It has finally arrived! Two boxes weighing a total of 500 kg have completed a 15,000 km journey, landed in Israel and reached Tel Aviv University. Our diffractometer will be installed next week!

Wishing Min success in his new position

Sometimes things change very quickly in academia. We congratulate Min on his new position in the United States and wish him every success. Fortunately, we will be able to continue our fruitful collaboration.

Setting up the electronics bench

The electronics bench is taking shape. The oscilloscope, multimeter and high-frequency voltage amplifier are learning how to work together. “To share or not to share the earth—that is the question.”

Working through ideas at the whiteboard

A whiteboard is, and has always been, an important instrument in any research laboratory. Feeling stuck? Our advice is to step back, take a deep breath and come to the board. It will always help in one way or another. Here, Min is developing an electronic circuit for in situ diffraction studies of ferroelectrics.

A fast X-ray detector arrives

After a long wait, a fast LaBr₃ scintillation counter has arrived at our lab from FMB Oxford. It will soon be integrated into the diffractometer to detect X-ray photons in time-resolved X-ray diffraction experiments.

A custom germanium monochromator

This germanium crystal was manufactured for the monochromator in our X-ray diffractometer by Integratds in Slovakia. Its unusual configuration features asymmetric cuts with two different asymmetry angles. The monochromator is optimized for beam transmission.

Welcome, Dr Hyeokmin Choe

We are happy to welcome Dr Hyeokmin Choe (Min). He joins our group as a postdoctoral researcher. Min is originally from Seoul, South Korea, but has lived in the United States for the past year and a half. He completed his PhD at the University of Siegen. We will certainly benefit from his experience in designing, performing and analyzing in situ X-ray diffraction experiments.

Experiments at ESRF beamline ID31

We performed another experiment at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility. This time, we worked at beamline ID31 in collaboration with Tony Schenk from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology.

Israel Science Foundation funding

For the next four years, our research will be supported by an Israel Science Foundation grant: “Fine structure and polarization rotation in ferroelectric perovskites.”

Our research on the journal cover

Our latest paper is featured on the cover page of Journal of Applied Crystallography. This paper demonstrates how synchrotron diffraction experiments with an area detector can explain the origin of enhanced piezoelectricity in ferroelectric single crystals. The experiments were performed at the Swiss-Norwegian Beam Lines at the ESRF.