Research Complex at Harwell

Discover the world of heritage science in our new interview with Arthur Graf, published today. We spoke to Arthur about the Harwell Heritage Network, a new project supporting RICHeS: Research Infrastructure for Conservation and Heritage Science. The network brings together a wealth of analytical tools and knowledge from across campus, with members from Diamond Light Source, ISIS Neutron and Muon Source and the Central Laser Facility. From ancient clams to medieval glass production, Arthur explains how his own field of XPS can unlock knowledge about the past. Read the interview here 👇 https://lnkd.in/eEdgH-93 STFC Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) HarwellXPS

Our review article is on the cover page! Curr. Issues Mol. Biol., Volume 46, Issue 10 (October 2024) MDPI NATA - Nucleic Acid Therapy Accelerator Research Complex at Harwell Medical Research Council UK Research and Innovation https://lnkd.in/gfiKPm2T

We’re excited to share that NATA has partnered with PCD Research to co-fund a research grant awarded to Professor Stephen Hart at UCL. 🧬The primary objective of this grant is to develop and optimise the delivery of mRNA therapies. This research will focus on restoring the function of cilia (tiny hair-like structures in the lungs) by targeting one of the most severe and common gene mutations responsible for primary ciliary dyskinesia. Check out the full press release on our website to learn more about how we’re advancing innovative therapies and working with partners to tackle rare diseases. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eTS7E4wk #NucleicAcidTherapies #PCDResearch #mRNATherapies #NATA #RareDiseases #HealthcareInnovation

This week, the Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry were awarded to the inventors of technologies that are intimately linked to our work at STFC. Read on to find out more. John J. Hopfield and Geoffrey E. Hinton received the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics “for foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.” Without machine learning, many of the enormous, rich datasets generated by modern science would be totally impenetrable: from analysing particle collisions in the Large Hadron Collider to surveying distant galaxies. Many of our facilities use machine learning to reduce the vast manual effort required to classify and analyse data from experiments. We also play a key role in helping to embed machine learning and related technologies into research and innovation. The STFC Hartree Centre helps businesses and organisations make the most of AI, supercomputing and more. Meanwhile, the STFC Scientific Computing Department provides training, support and resources to the research community through programmes like CoSeC UKRI , and their Scientific Machine Learning Group provides expertise on a range of national and international projects. Yesterday’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry was jointly awarded to David Baker ‘for computational protein design’ and Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper ‘for protein structure prediction’ through their AI model AlphaFold2. For decades, figuring out how proteins folded required sophisticated experimental techniques backed up by major software projects. These included CCP4, a UK community-based software suite led by CoSeC. When AlphaFold2 was presented in 2020, it was able to accurately predict the structure of virtually all 200 million known proteins. Dr Martin Wynn , STFC Scientific Computing’s Computational Biology Theme Leader, describes its impact: “AlphaFold has had an incredible effect on research activities in the biomedical sciences over the last few years. The AI model that has been developed builds on the collective effort of the structural biology community over several decades, an effort to which STFC has made an essential contribution via large scale user facilities such as the SRS and Diamond, and community software projects such as CCP4 and CCP-EM. “We are now in a new era of structural biology in which, with the ready availability of predicted structures, scientists can ask more sophisticated questions about how these structures function and adapt in living organisms.” Congratulations to the awardees from everyone at STFC! #NobelPrize

We thought we'd share some updates on the progress of the HiLUX Project - the major upgrade to Ultra and Artemis: Miniature Replicas: There's a little room in the Research Complex at Harwell that harbours a very important setup! Pictured below, this miniature replica of the new Ultra laser system is allowing scientists test things, such as automated processes, ahead of the real thing. The Real Thing: Meanwhile, in the rooms where Ultra A used to be, the new lab is beginning to take shape. The gantry for the laser (scaffolding above the tables) has just been completed. Designed to fit together like a jigsaw, these gantries will hold all the control equipment for the future laser and experiments.

For the first time ever, a user group is using our Artemis, Ultra and Octopus facilities simultaneously for one experiment!  Why? Because what they’re studying is an especially awkward specimen… The University of Liverpool group is looking at what’s happening inside lithium-ion batteries (like those in our phones & laptops) as they lose efficiency over time. 🪫 Li-ion batteries are notoriously hard to study due to the obscuring fluorescence they emit when you attempt to extract Raman light from them. The team are working with the Ultra setup in the Artemis lab using Kerr-Gated Raman to “gate” out the fluorescence background whilst still letting the useful information through. Simultaneously, they’re using Fluorescence Imaging in the Octopus lab to study the nature of the fluorescence itself! The team are adding to the wealth of research they’ve conducted over the years on Li-ion battery degradation, with the hope that it may help lead towards longer lasting battery efficiency in the future. 🔋🌱

It was great to welcome a new cohort of PhDs from Nottingham again this year. We'll be seeing some of them again soon to help further their projects!

We are pleased to announce a Quasi-Elastic Neutron Scattering (QENS) BAG at ISIS Neutron and Muon Source. We are keen to encourage users with no experience of QENS and will provide support throughout the process. QENS is a powerful tool in catalysis research, although currently underused. We will be hosting a webinar on 22 October at 15:00 with Dr. Ian Silverwood, to provide information on the benefits, process and how to apply for the BAG. Register for free at https://lnkd.in/ekZ6EC8a...

🔋 Research Showcase 🔋 What role will sulphur play in the next generation of battery power? Discover the recent publication by lead author Tayeba Safdar, working on sulphur/carbon composite cathodes to overcome the limitations of existing lithium-sulphur batteries. Tayeba's PhD project is funded by The Faraday Institution, working with Chun Ann H. at Imperial College London. 👉 Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/eSMDevDs

Now we can predict properties of high-entropy alloys or amorphous metallic glasses! See how on: https://lnkd.in/eGSKcyec Machine learning in action! Well done to my PhD students, Son and Guwon! ISIS Neutron and Muon Source Royal Academy of Engineering STFC Cavendish Laboratory - Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge STFC Scientific Computing