MRI Consortium: Development of a Monochromator System for Enabling New Imaging and Submicron Probes for High Pressure Research

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Technical AbstractThe proposal seeks funds to acquire a cryogenically-cooled, double-crystal, x-ray monochromator system for usage by the HPCAT synchrotron consortium at the Advanced Photon Sources (APS), Argonne National Laboratory. Acquisition of the state-of-the-art monochromator will enable us to harness the full capacity of the new, powerful, canted undulator source which is scheduled for installation this Fall according to the APS x-ray source upgrade program. By handling the 5-10 times higher heat load from the upgraded undulator and preserving the source size, stability, and coherence, the proposed new monochromator system will improve the spatial and temporal resolutions of high-pressure x-ray diffraction, spectroscopy and imaging experiments by one to two orders of magnitude and will double the effective user beam time. Such unprecedented advance in high-pressure synchrotron technology will greatly enhance high-pressure physics research in areas of superconductivity, ferroelectricity, colossal magnetoresistivity, phonon dynamics, Fermi-surface nesting, d-electron spin pairing, f-electron delocalization, and insulator-metal transition, and chemistry research in areas of high-pressure syntheses and characterizations of novel nitrides, hydrides, oxides, molecular compounds, crystal amorphization, bonding changes, and photochemistry. The progresses in fundamental research, in turn, impact on the applied sciences, ranging from the understanding the Earth's and planetary deep interiors to the creations of novel and technologically important materials. The timely upgrade of the world-class high-pressure synchrotron consortium is essential for the U.S. high-pressure research and education community, and benefits students and postdoctoral researchers who are the dominant users of the consortium facility.Non-Technical Abstract Pressure is a fundamental environment that alters all states of matter. In the currently accessible pressure range of 300 gigapascals (that is three million times the pressure of the Earth's atmosphere at sea level), ordinary materials transform to novel forms that may possess extremely useful properties for modern technological applications. Realization of the enormous potential in science and technology, however, relies upon the advancement of instrumentation for probing these properties under the extreme pressures. We propose to acquire a state-of-the-art high-pressure x-ray instrument, namely a monochromator assembly, that can harness the full capacity of the powerful x-ray source at the newly upgraded HPCAT facility. The proposed instrument will provide atomic-scale clarity and millionth-of-a-second time resolution for investigation of a wide range of pressure-induced phenomena. It will lead to unprecedented advances in high-pressure materials research in physics, chemistry and Earth sciences. The deep secrets hidden under the extreme pressures and temperatures in the Earth's and planetary interiors will be unraveled. Technologically useful materials will be discovered in the vast, unexplored, high-pressure regime, and recovered for usage at ordinary conditions. The timely upgrade of the world-leading high-pressure consortium facility is essential for the U.S. high-pressure research and education community, especially for the benefits of students and postdoctoral researchers who are the main users of the facility.