Selected advances in small-angle scattering and applications they serve in manufacturing, energy and climate change

Upgrade of the KWS-2 high-intensity/extended-Q-range SANS diffractometer of JCNS for soft matter and biophysics: in situ SEC, controlled in situ RH/T variation and WANS detection

The KWS-2 small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) diffractometer operated by Jülich Centre for Neutron Science (JCNS) at Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Zentrum, Garching, Germany, is dedicated to the investigation of mesoscopic multi-scale structures and structural changes due to rapid kinetic processes in soft condensed matter and biophysical systems. Following requests from the user community, it has been repeatedly upgraded with respect to the most important methodological parameters of an instrument of this type, namely the intensity on the sample, the instrumental resolution and the minimum scattering variable Q min. Here we report on further specific improvements to the sample environment and detection capabilities which have just been completed or are being implemented. Complementary size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) for in situ protein purification was developed and optimized at KWS-2 to provide the instrument with biological samples of controlled quality. The instrument is also currently being equipped with a wide-angle neutron scattering (WANS) detector which will allow it to bridge the atomic and mesoscale, benefiting from the instrument's adjustable resolution down to Δλ/λ = 2%. For controlled relative humidity and temperature (RH/T) on ionic conductive samples for energy applications or biomembranes for biophysical and health applications, a precise dew point generator has recently been characterized and commissioned; this offers great versatility with regard to varying the contrast in situ in the beam on hydrated samples.

Small-angle scattering interferometry with neutron orbital angular momentum states

Methods to prepare and characterize neutron helical waves carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM) were recently demonstrated at small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) facilities. These methods enable access to the neutron orbital degree of freedom which provides new avenues of exploration in fundamental science experiments as well as in material characterization applications. However, it remains a challenge to recover phase profiles from SANS measurements. We introduce and demonstrate a novel neutron interferometry technique for extracting phase information that is typically lost in SANS measurements. An array of reference beams, with complementary structured phase profiles, are put into a coherent superposition with the array of object beams, thereby manifesting the phase information in the far-field intensity profile. We demonstrate this by resolving petal-structure signatures of helical wave interference for the first time: an implementation of the long-sought recovery of phase information from small-angle scattering measurements.

AI-enhanced X-ray diffraction analysis: towards real-time mineral phase identification and quantification

The use of convolutional neural networks can revolutionize XRD analysis by significantly reducing processing times. Demonstration against synthetic and real mineral mixture data provide a first assessment of the accuracy of such methods.

Bridging length scales in hard materials with ultra-small angle X-ray scattering - a critical review

Owing to their exceptional properties, hard materials such as advanced ceramics, metals and composites have enormous economic and societal value, with applications across numerous industries. Understanding their microstructural characteristics is crucial for enhancing their performance, materials development and unleashing their potential for future innovative applications. However, their microstructures are unambiguously hierarchical and typically span several length scales, from sub-ångstrom to micrometres, posing demanding challenges for their characterization, especially for in situ characterization which is critical to understanding the kinetic processes controlling microstructure formation. This review provides a comprehensive description of the rapidly developing technique of ultra-small angle X-ray scattering (USAXS), a nondestructive method for probing the nano-to-micrometre scale features of hard materials. USAXS and its complementary techniques, when developed for and applied to hard materials, offer valuable insights into their porosity, grain size, phase composition and inhomogeneities. We discuss the fundamental principles, instrumentation, advantages, challenges and global status of USAXS for hard materials. Using selected examples, we demonstrate the potential of this technique for unveiling the microstructural characteristics of hard materials and its relevance to advanced materials development and manufacturing process optimization. We also provide our perspective on the opportunities and challenges for the continued development of USAXS, including multimodal characterization, coherent scattering, time-resolved studies, machine learning and autonomous experiments. Our goal is to stimulate further implementation and exploration of USAXS techniques and inspire their broader adoption across various domains of hard materials science, thereby driving the field toward discoveries and further developments.

Recent advances in synchrotron scattering methods for probing the structure and dynamics of colloids

Recent progress in synchrotron based X-ray scattering methods applied to colloid science is reviewed. An important figure of merit of these techniques is that they enable in situ investigations of colloidal systems under the desired thermophysical and rheological conditions. An ensemble averaged simultaneous structural and dynamical information can be derived albeit in reciprocal space. Significant improvements in X-ray source brilliance and advances in detector technology have overcome some of the limitations in the past. Notably coherent X-ray scattering techniques have become more competitive and they provide complementary information to laboratory based real space methods. For a system with sufficient scattering contrast, size ranges from nm to several μm and time scales down to μs are now amenable to X-ray scattering investigations. A wide variety of sample environments can be combined with scattering experiments further enriching the science that could be pursued by means of advanced X-ray scattering instruments. Some of these recent progresses are illustrated via representative examples. To derive quantitative information from the scattering data, rigorous data analysis or modeling is required. Development of powerful computational tools including the use of artificial intelligence have become the emerging trend.