As part of the Masters of Engineering (MEng) program students are expected to do a 3-6 credit design project and a 3-4 credit special project. The first bunch of D-line alumni shall be highlighted here.

Armand Beaudoin, University of Illinois Emeritus Professor of Mechanical Engineering, has accepted the position of InSitμ Industrial Program Director. Armand will spend several months per year at CHESS with industrial users developing and implementing experimental and computational solutions to their most demanding structural materials challenges. Together with InSitμ Director, Matt Miller, Armand visited current InSitμ partners, Caterpillar and Boeing this fall to discuss the first project each company will bring to the beamline.

Electrostatic interactions are important for both phases, and conformational changes occurring in an enzyme during its catalytic cycle modify these interactions. For complete understanding of the catalytic process, we require knowledge of the contribution of electrostatic effects to each step in the process, as well as an understanding of how conformational changes affect the electrostatic environment in the active site.

“The ultimate goal is to control electronic and magnetic properties of new materials using various knobs,” said Kyle Shen, associate professor of physics, who led the study published in Physical Review Letters in January. “What you want is to turn one knob, change some parameter, and turn a material from this to that.”

Professor Arnold, a long-time user of CHESS and MacCHESS facilities, was honored for his research in macromolecular crystallography and drug design targeting infectious disease agents. Also cited were his contributions to the field through scholarly and organizational activities, including serving on advisory boards for macromolecular crystallography and synchrotron radiation. Arnold was among eight ACA Fellows named this year, bringing the total to 35.

Serial microcrystallography has been developed to pass submicron protein crystals through the x-ray beam during which only a single diffraction image is captured before the specimen is destroyed. In almost all cases the angular orientation of the crystal is not known, so the series of diffraction images cannot be analyzed using existing software approaches.

The origins of the trace elements observed by SXRF in inscribed regions are unclear, but are speculated being derived from the tools and paints used in the original inscriptions. Although SXRF is effective for naturally worn surfaces, the measurement has also been complicated by object surface curvature or relief, such as incised letters.

“Who wants to see if they are a Zombie?” asks Professor Carl Franck, causing all twelve Girl Scouts in the room to look up from their work and stare in bewilderment.  “Let’s go outside and see if you are really alive by using a TV satellite dish to measure your body heat!”  Still doubtful, a handful of girls get out of their seats and walk excitedly towards the door, following Professor Franck outside.

Such organic perovskites can be prepared from a solution of readily available lead salts and organic cations (e.g., CH₃NH₃I) and yield the desired high-performance material under a gentle thermal anneal at 100°C. The process seems to be also relatively insensitive to impurities, as opposed to the ultra-high purity demands and high process temperatures of amorphous silicon, the most commonly used material for solar cells currently.