X-ray and neutron methods at large-scale facilities for materials and their processes: microscopy/imaging, diffraction, spectroscopy and spectromicroscopy

Powerful X-ray and neutron sources at large-scale facilities are considered as the ultimate tools for probing microstructure and electronic properties of functional and engineering materials. This symposium covers basic concepts of these sources, studies of materials’ physical and chemical properties, and impacts in industry beyond academia.

Scope:

Nowadays, the fast development of advanced materials demands in-depth understanding of physical mechanisms that drive materials formation, processing, and functionality. Recently, remarkable advances at large-scale facilities have been achieved thanks to emerging techniques developed at spallation neutron and X-ray sources such as the 3rd-4th generation synchrotrons and free electron lasers. The high brilliances, small beam size, high photon and particle energies, short but controllable pulses allow for probing structural, microstructural, morphological and electronic structure at unprecedented levels.

This symposium will therefore gather experts in the field to explore the state-of-art X-ray and neutron-based research for understanding, design, development and validation of next generation engineering and functional materials. The unique source properties at large-scale facilities enable time resolutions down to picosecond timescales, spatial resolution down to the nanoscale, bulk penetration, phase contrast, and spectroscopic distinctions of different materials. They further facilitate in-situ and operando studies during the formation or functioning of materials. For engineering materials, these techniques provide valuable information about crystal phases, microstructure, texture, defects and residual stresses. For functional materials, besides the above information, the global and micro-scale electronic structures can also be unveiled at nanometer scale in cooperating with coherent x-ray imaging and spectro-microscopic studies. The scope of the materials science topics and their applications is extensive, encompassing electronic and optoelectronic devices (including flexible ones), transport properties, photovoltaic applications, catalysis, metallurgy, energy related, bio-inspired and structural materials.

Hot topics to be covered by the symposium:

• Advances in photon and neutron facilities
• Synchrotron, free electron-laser, and neutron diffraction and imaging techniques
• Coherent X-ray imaging (CDI) techniques
• In in-situ/operando studies
• Advances in diffraction/spectroscopy/imaging and (spectro-)microscopy techniques:instrumentations, applications in materials science and metallurgy
• Physics and chemistry of engineering and materials for energy and environmental applications (batteries, catalysis, nuclear energy materials, …) probed via large-scale facilities
• Monitoring materials processing via spectroscopies, microscopies, and photon and particle diffractions
• Advances in numerical tools for data treatment (AI, ML, …)
• Multiscale computer modeling related to synchrotron or neutron characterization

List of invited speakers (confirmed):

• Irene CALVO, Instituto de Nanociencia y Materiales de Aragon, Universidade Zaragoza (Spain)
• Tilman GRÜNWALD, Institute Fresnel, Marseille (France)
• Aline LEON, European Institute for Energy Research (Eifer), Karlsruhe (Germany)
• Sandrine LYONNARD, CEA Grenoble (France)
• Anatoly SENSHYN, Heinz-Maier-Leibnitz Research Neutron Source (FRM II), Garching (Germany)
• Aude SIMAR, Université Catholique Louvain (Belgium)