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October 10-12, 2023

October 10-12, 2023#

 

Download all slide decks and other course materials: October2023.zip

X-ray absorption spectroscopy is a core technique of the DOE synchrotron user facilities and attracts diverse scientific communities. This 3-day course offered by NSLS-II experts introduced XAS data analysis to new and prospective users and provide an opportunity to perform real experiments at NSLS-II XAS beamlines. The first two days were devoted to the fundamentals of XAS analysis, data reduction and processing, and the basics of XAS experiments and instrumentation.

Participants were trained on XAS data analysis of increasing complexity. Modern XAS methods such as high-resolution spectroscopy were be introduced. On the third day, the participants participated in the experiments at XAS beamlines and analyzed the data they collected.

Course page at NSLS-II

This course was organized and presented by Lu Ma, Bruce Ravel, and Eli Stavitski with additional lectures by Denis Leshchev and Akhil Tayal. We are grateful to Mercy Baez and Mariah Barget for logistical support.

_images/October2023_group_photo.jpg

Fig. 1 The participants and instructors of the October 2023 XAS Workshop#

Tuesday, October 10#

Introduction to XAS:

Overview of the basic physics and chemistry of XAS


Data reduction and background removal:

An introduction to processing XAS data, including background subtraction and Fourier transforms


EXAFS analysis I:

An introductory EXAFS data analysis problem using FeS2. This is the introduction to fitting EXAFS data analysis with Feff and Artemis


Sample preparation and sample environments:

A discussion of how to plan for your XAS experiment, how to prepare your samples for measurement, and how to plan for in situ and operando experiments

Wednesday, October 11#

XANES analysis:

An introduction to methods and challenges of XANES analysis.


EXAFS analysis II:

The FeS2 example from the previous day might seem a bit too simple. It involves analysis of a crystalline material, thus the path through the analysis obviously starts with crystal data. In these two lectures, some ideas are presented about how to perform EXAFS analysis on more complex materials.


High energy resolution techniques:

High energy resolution fluorescence detection (HERFD), X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES), and resonant inelastic X-ray spectroscopy (RIXS) using crystal spectrometers.


Combined techniques:

How to plan for and implement additional measurement techniques such as XRD and DRIFTS during your XAS experiment.

Thursday, October 12#

Experimental session:

Hands-on XAS data collection at the NSLS-II hard X-ray spectroscopy beamlines

Data from BMM#

During the hands-on experiment at BMM, we measured the following materials, all at the iron K edge:

  1. Wustite : FeO, measured in transmission

  2. Hematite: Fe2O3, measured in transmission

  3. Pyrite: FeS2, measured in transmission

  4. Vesuvianite: nominally Ca10(Mg, Fe)2Al4(SiO4)5(Si2O7)2(OH,F)4, measured in transmission and fluorescence

  5. FeS2 extracted from a battery and measured in fluorescence (sample contributed by a workshop participant)

Zip file containing these data: BMM data.zip

Contents