Abstract
The ultrahigh resolution inelastic X-ray scattering (IXS) beamline at NSLS-II is designed and built to achieve sub-meV resolution at a moderate energy of 9.13 keV for IXS experiments with high momentum resolution and high spectral contrast. The key instrument is a novel spectrometer featuring a new type of analyzer optics, which combines post-sample collimation with angular dispersive crystal optics. As the first user instrument of its kind, the spectrometer has demonstrated unique research capabilities in exploring low momentum transfer (Q), THz dynamics in soft material systems characterized by mesoscopic heterogeneity and complexity, such as liquid crystals and bio-membranes. Ongoing efforts to improve performance since the start of user operations have resulted in a state-of-the-art energy resolution in routine operations of less than 1.4 meV, with sharp Gaussian-like tails, making it a premier IXS spectrometer for studying the dynamics of soft materials, while also delivering competitive performance for investigating phonon dynamics in hard condensed matter systems, including a broad range of quantum materials.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 012102 |
| Journal | Journal of Physics: Conference Series |
| Volume | 3010 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2025 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | 15th International Conference on Synchrotron Radiation Instrumentation, SRI 2024 - Hamburg, Germany Duration: Aug 26 2024 → Aug 30 2024 |
Funding
We are grateful to M. Krisch, T. Toellner and A. Baron for their critical review and many in-depth discussions of the performance issues during the early phase of commissioning and operation of the beamline. We are indebted to O. Chubar for support in insertion devices, E. Nazaretski on mechanical systems, M. Idir on optics metrology, D.P. Siddons in detectors, R. Greene, B. Marino, and S. Meyer for technical support. We thank M. Zhernenkov, D. Bolmatov and Y. Shvydko for stimulating discussions, and J. Hill, P. Zschack, R. Pindak and M. Fukuto for strong support and encouragement. A. Baron is acknowledged for providing the resolution data from SPring-8 for comparison and for suggesting the use of glassy carbon for resolution measurements. This research used the IXS beamline (10-ID) of the National Synchrotron Light Source II, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility operated for the DOE Office of Science by Brookhaven National Laboratory under Contract No. DE-SC0012704.