How is Synchrotron Radiation Used?
Synchrotron radiation is used to study structural details of matter, on a scale that is sensitive to the placement of individual atoms. This ability opens the door to many applications, including the following: • It provides information about arrangement of the atoms in complex materials including chemical and biological materials. It also provides information about the changes in these atomic arrangements as these materials carry out their biological or chemical function. Since structure of a chemical or biological material often determines function, knowing the detailed structure can give us insights into their chemical or biological activity or tell us how to improve manufactured materials. • It provides information on the electronic structure of materials and surfaces . This is of particular interest to the semiconductor industry in developing new materials for better and faster computer chips for example. • It can be used for imaging, including applications to medical imaging and
