04.05.2020 - #Corona: HZB resumes operation step by step
A novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is spreading worldwide and can cause severe respiratory symptoms (COVID-19). © CDC/Wikimedia commons
After a careful assessment of the situation, the management decided that operations at HZB would be resumed step by step from 4 May onwards. Strict security regulations apply. BESSY II will be available again for in-house research from 11 May. For Sars-CoV-2-relevant measurements a fast access to BESSY II has been established.
We will continuously update the information on this page. We follow the current recommendations of the Robert Koch Institute, the Federal Ministry of Health and the Senate Chancellery and ask all parties involved for their understanding.
Gradual resumption of operations at HZB
The HZB gradually resumes operations - under permanent observation of the situation and strict security regulations.
The BESSY II accelerator will be put back into operation, but will initially only be available to HZB researchers. In the next few weeks, the laboratories will again be able to operate in a restricted manner, in accordance with safety regulations. Please contact the laboratory managers for further details.
User operation at BESSY II will be suspended until 31 May 2020. Exception: Sars-CoV-2 relevant measurements on the MX-Beamlines can be performed. For research groups we have established a fast-track access.
The patient operation in the proton therapy takes place according to plan. Should changes become necessary due to developments, all those affected will be informed.
Furthermore these measures apply:
Immediate cancellation of all events and visitor groups until 20.07.2020 in accordance with the notification of the Senate Chancellery, e.g.:
- The Long Night of Science on 6 June 2020
- Physics for breakfast on 8 July 2020 is cancelled.
- Groups of visitors cannot visit our facilities.
- School lab groups are cancelled.
- Workshops and scientific events are cancelled.
- all trainings offered by HZB company sports are cancelled.
Access for external companies: In order to ensure effective containment of the corona virus, employees of external companies may only enter HZB if they have had no contact with an infected person within the last three weeks (neither privately nor professionally). This must be confirmed in a written form (see download box). Further information can be obtained from your respective contact person at HZB.
HZB staff will get fresh information via the intranet.
- BESSY II: How intrinsic oxygen shortens the lifespan of solid-state batteriesAlthough solid-state batteries (SSBs) demonstrate high performance and are intrinsically safe, their capacity currently declines rapidly. A team from the TU Wien, Humboldt-University Berlin and HZB has now analysed a TiS₂|Li₃YCl₆ solid-state half-cell in operando at BESSY II using a special sample environment that allows for non-destructive investigation under real operating conditions. Data obtained by combination of soft and hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS and HAXPES) revealed a new degradation mechanism that had not previously been identified in solid-state batteries. They have gained some surprising insights, particularly regarding the harmful role played by intrinsic oxygen. This study provides valuable information for improving design and handling of such batteries.
- Spintronics at BESSY II: Real-time analysis of magnetic bilayer systemsSpintronic devices enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. They are based on the interaction between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic layers. Now, a team from Freie Universität Berlin, HZB and Uppsala University has succeeded in tracking, for each layer separately, how the magnetic order changes after a short laser pulse has excited the system. They were also able to identify the main cause of the loss of antiferromagnetic order in the oxide layer: the excitation is transported from the hot electrons in the ferromagnetic metal to the spins in the antiferromagnet.
- Environmental Chemistry at BESSY II: Radicals in waterwaysHow do radicals form in aqueous solutions when exposed to UV light? This question is important for health research and environmental protection, for example with regard to the overfertilisation of water bodies by intensive agriculture. A team at BESSY II has now developed a new method of investigating hydroxyl radicals in solution. By using a clever trick, the scientists gained surprising insights into the reaction pathway.