January 2019 – July 2022
Composite materials are of considerable interest as solid electrolytes for smaller, lighter batteries. A study at the Advanced Light Source showed that an ion-conducting polymer composite, placed in an electric field, forms ion-rich concentration hotspots that grow even after the field is removed. https://als.lbl.gov/probing-composite-materials-to-make-better-batteries/
DOE’s Office of Science has made available Public Reusable Research Data Resources to help advance scientific and technical knowledge. Of the six resources listed on the PuRe Data Resources website, four are led by Berkeley Lab: the Materials Project, JGI, Kbase, and Particle Data Group. https://link.voicestorm.com/Redirect/486901?r=https%3a%2f%2fscience.osti.gov%2fInitiatives%2fPuRe-Data%2fResources-at-a-Glance&__c=486901_ArticleBroadcast_5350023_DySi&s=3TmrCUo3Y7EZ1XAu_4z7v_pCzzaqj73e2DoZn49oYS4
Brett Helms and Corinne Scown help lead a team of Lab scientists working to develop plastic that, unlike traditional plastics, can be recycled indefinitely and is not made from petroleum. In this Q & A, they share more about the project success to date and their hopes for future collaboration. https://newscenter.lbl.gov/2021/06/14/the-story-infinite-eco-plastic/
With summer getting underway, the Lab is welcoming new fellows and interns. Read about the Berkeley Bridge Graduate Summer Fellows, Cal Energy Corps undergraduate students, and the Cal State University East Bay Pathbreaker Program’s master’s-level students who are joining the Lab this summer. https://research.lbl.gov/2021/06/07/summer-brings-fellows-and-students-to-the-lab/
A team of Foundry users and staff has produced a new kind of neural probe that packs the ability to both excite and monitor neuron activity inside an exceptionally small package, an order of magnitude more condensed than the current state of the art. https://foundry.lbl.gov/2021/06/08/illuminating-the-workings-of-the-brain/
IPO is hosting a series of conversations about innovation. Join us for a talk with Deepti Tanjore, director of the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU). Host Gregg Scharfstein will focus on Deepti’s story and her innovations to scale up synthetic biology technologies. https://calendar.google.com/event?action=TEMPLATE&tmeid=Nmg0dnQ0YTJpYTR2am0zaXAycWhyY3RkZ3RfMjAyMTA2MTVUMTkwMDAwWiBsYmwuZ292XzRzNHJyZzEybDZlcWc2bmNtYzJrdDB2Y2dnQGc&tmsrc=lbl.gov_4s4rrg12l6eqg6ncmc2kt0vcgg%40group.calendar.google.com
Congratulations to Lindsay Bassman (CSA), Marlene Turner (PSA), and Michael Whittaker (EESA) for being selected as participants in this year’s Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting as part of a UC program. They will attend virtual lectures this summer with 40 Nobel laureates around the world. https://research.lbl.gov/2021/06/04/lab-postdocs-to-attend-nobel-laureate-meeting-in-lindau-germany/
Watch a replay of the dedication of NERSC’s newest flagship supercomputer, “Perlmutter.” The event featured many dignitaries, including Nobelist and Lab scientist Saul Perlmutter, who had the honor of running the first calculations on the computer named in his honor. https://youtu.be/I6OI8E6ef64
Charuleka Varadharajan, a research scientist in EESA, was interested in the nexus of environmental science and computation even as an undergraduate. At the Lab, she has found a natural home for her interdisciplinary research work. She shares her passion for this work. https://sites.google.com/lbl.gov/the-next-90/imagine-the-future/earth-and-environmental-sciences
Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are a promising technology for cleanly converting chemical energy to electricity. At the Advanced Light Source, researchers studied a model SOFC material in a new way by exposing a different facet of its crystal structure to oxygen gas. https://als.lbl.gov/scientists-uncover-a-different-facet-of-fuel-cell-chemistry/