SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory | Better Buildings Initiative

SLAC explores how the universe works at the biggest, smallest and fastest scales and invents powerful tools used by scientists around the globe. SLAC's research helps solve real-world problems and advances the interests of the nation.

Many threads of SLAC research come together in the quest for clean, sustainable energy sources. SLAC's developing new materials for batteries, fuel cells and solar cells, studying how plants get energy from photosynthesis and finding ways to make the electric grid smarter and more resilient.

SLAC amplifies its impact by working with companies to help spread the benefits of basic research out into society. Partnering with SLAC gives companies access to our world-class experimental facilities, expert scientists and patented technologies. SLAC continues to strengthen its ties with industrial partners, government agencies, Silicon Valley and Stanford University, which operates the lab for the DOE Office of Science. Together they solve problems requiring the unique combination of facilities and expertise only SLAC can provide.

For a general overview of SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, including its core capabilities, visit SLAC's Solution Center profile or their home page. Learn more about individual user facilities below.

Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL)

Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) at SLAC is one of the pioneering synchrotron facilities in the world, known for outstanding user support and important contributions to science and instumentation. SSRL produces extremely bright X-ray light for probing our world at the atomic and molecular level. More than 1,700 scientists from all over the world use it each year for research that benefits many sectors of the American economy. Their work spurs advances in medicine, energy production, environmental cleanup, nanotechnology and new materials. As one of five light sources funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, SSRL enables research that benefits every sector of the American economy.

At SSRL's experimental facilities, researchers use a range of X-ray techniques to study the structures and properties of matter. By scattering X-rays off of samples, researchers can measure how samples absorb and emit X-rays to determine their electronic properties. This produces images of small and large objects using X-rays as a light source – images that carry information about chemical composition and structural ordering.

Applications of the research performed at SSRL include:

Building Better Batteries - Scientists around the world are racing to develop cheaper, sturdier, more efficient rechargeable batteries for electric cars, cell phones, laptops and other devices. With the SSRL X-ray beam they can test new battery materials and components in realistic operating conditions, watching split-second chemical changes occur as the battery charges and discharges. These studies are overturning old notions of how batteries work and pointing out new ways to improve them.
Improving Solar Cells - By packing molecules closer together, scientists have developed a semiconductor material that is among the speediest yet. This material—and the innovative process used to manufacture it—may significantly improve the efficiency and cost of organic solar cells used to turn the sun’s rays into usable energy.
Revolutionizing Electronics - No longer content with materials found in nature or made through trial and error, scientists at SSRL are finding ways to design new materials, in atom by atom detail, that precisely fit society's needs. Applications include power lines that transmit electricity with 100 percent efficiency, new types of solar cells, more powerful electronics, catalysts that speed chemical reactions, and novel computing technologies.

By partnering with industry, SSRL has enabled technical advancements that would otherwise not have been possible. Companies use SSRL instruments to help bring discoveries and innovations from theory to reality. Products ranging from the world's most advanced computer chips to pharmaceuticals such as Tamiflu® have been created thanks to research conducted at SSRL by companies including HP, IBM, Intel, GE, BP, Northrop Grumman, Sony, UOP, Exelixis, Genetech, Pfizer, and Roche. In addition, research and development activities at SSRL create a great variety of opportunities for commercial ventures, including the foundation of new start-up companies. These start-ups have created hundreds of jobs and give advanced technologies a foothold in the commercial market.

For more information, please visit the SSRL website or contact:

Piero Pianetta
SSRL Deputy Director
(650) 926-3484
pianetta@slac.stanford.edu