Scientific instrumentation developed for Sirius was a highlight of the 2024 edition of the event, held in Germany
The 15th edition of the International Conference on Synchrotron Radiation Instrumentation (SRI) was notable for the significant participation of the team responsible for developing the scientific instrumentation for Sirius, the 4th generation synchrotron light source at the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM).
The event, held in Hamburg (Germany) between August 26 and 30, 2024, was attended by 17 researchers and engineers from the Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS). The LNLS team made outstanding contributions during plenary sessions, presentations, and poster sessions. This is the largest delegation ever sent to SRI, the world’s most important synchrotron conference.
“We presented Sirius for the first time at SRI 2015, and at the time we had very little to show,” says Harry Westphal Jr, director of LNLS. “Nine years later, we’re very proud. Experts in the field have said that Brazil is leading the way in scientific instrumentation for use in 4th generation synchrotrons”.
SRI 2027 in Brazil
During SRI 2024, Brazil was chosen to host the next edition of the conference, scheduled for 2027. The decision was made among Brazil, Canada, and South Korea, countries that had expressed interest in hosting the international event.
Held for more than 40 years, the SRI aims to anticipate the latest ideas and trends in synchrotron instrumentation, with a view to sharing technical and scientific knowledge and advancing the field as a whole.
In its expression of interest, the LNLS/CNPEM highlighted the advanced instrumentation already developed for various experimental techniques in the first 14 beamlines of Sirius and in the new beamlines being designed for the second phase of the project.
The LNLS/CNPEM also highlighted the three bioimaging beamlines under development for Project Orion, CNPEM’s laboratory complex for advanced research into pathogens. Orion will comprise high and maximum biological containment facilities (NB4), the first of the kind in Latin America and the first in the world to be connected to a synchrotron light source.
Science Poster Prize
LNLS/CNPEM engineer Renan Geraldes received the main prize for his poster, which presented the charging chamber of the cryogenic nanoprobe at the Sapoti experimental station on the Carnaúba beamline at Sirius.
“In addition to the invitations to present received by the editing team and the choice of Brazil as the next host, the awarding of a work also symbolizes and concretizes, in a way, the recognition of the space occupied by Sirius within the synchrotron community,” says Renan Geraldes.
About LNLS
The Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS) is dedicated to scientific research and technological development involving synchrotron light. The LNLS focuses on operating and exploring the multidisciplinary potential of Sirius, the most advanced scientific infrastructure in Brazil. With ten research stations already operational and open to the scientific and industrial community, Sirius enables thousands of researchers from various fields to test hypotheses about the microscopic mechanisms that result in the properties of materials, both natural and synthetic, used in different areas such as health, environment, energy, and agriculture. The LNLS is part of the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), located in Campinas, São Paulo, a non-profit organization supervised by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MCTI).
About CNPEM
The Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) is home to a state-of-the-art, multi-user and multidisciplinary scientific environment and works on different fronts within the Brazilian National System for Science, Technology and Innovation. A social organization overseen by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), CNPEM is driven by research that impacts the areas of health, energy, renewable materials, and sustainability. It is responsible for Sirius, the largest assembly of scientific equipment constructed in the country, and is currently constructing Project Orion, a laboratory complex for advanced pathogen research. Highly specialized science and engineering teams, sophisticated infrastructure open to the scientific community, strategic lines of investigation, innovative projects involving the productive sector, and training for researchers and students are the pillars of this institution that is unique in Brazil and able to serve as a bridge between knowledge and innovation. It is responsible for operating the Brazilian Synchrotron Light (LNLS), Biosciences (LNBio), Nanotechnology (LNNano), and Biorenewables (LNBR) National Laboratories, as well as the Ilum School of Science, which offers a bachelor’s degree program in science and technology with support from the Ministry of Education (MEC).
