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Natural sciences
- Nanophysics and nanosystems
- Soft condensed matter
- Surfaces, interfaces, 2D materials
- Chemistry of clusters, colloids and nanomaterials
- Catalysis
Synchrotron X-rays are produced when charged particles circulate in a storage ring close to the speed of light and are much more intense compared to the X-rays used for example in hospitals. By studying the interaction of a synchrotron X-ray beam with living or non-living matter, the matter structure and structural changes are revealed down to atomic lengths scales and at submillisecond time intervals. This project finances research at DUBBLE, the two Flemish research stations attached to the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, ESRF, in Grenoble. Through experiments at the ESRF, Flemish scientists and engineers are able to explain the chemical and physical properties of matter. With this knowledge, they can design new materials, advanced electronic components or better solar cells. Such studies also allow revealing what our planet is made of, how human actions affect the environment, what the processes are that sustain life or what the secrets are hidden behind old paintings. Others use the outcome of synchrotron based research to develop more tasty and healthy food or to find new ways of conquering health threatening deceases.