The resumption of the German Bundesliga next weekend amid the COVID-19 crisis will give hope to other European leagues that they can also successfully return, according to Schalke 04 coach David Wagner.

Picture shows Sania and her son, wearing nightsuits all cuddled up in bed. Izhaan has a sweet smile on his face that can brighten anyone's day.

A total of 15,25,631 tests have been conducted so far across 332 government and 121 private laboratories.

An X-ray amplitude-splitting interferometer based on compound refractive lenses, which operates in the reflection mode, is proposed and realized. The idea of a reflecto-interferometer is to use a very simplified experimental setup where a focused X-ray beam reflected from parallel flat surfaces creates an interference pattern in a wide angular range. The functional capabilities of the interferometer were experimentally tested at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) ID06 beamline in the X-ray energy range from 10 keV to 15 keV. The main features of the proposed approach, high spatial and temporal resolution, were demonstrated experimentally. The reflections from free-standing Si3N4 membranes, gold and resist layers were studied. Experimentally recorded interferograms are in good agreement with our simulations. The main advantages and future possible applications of the reflecto-interferometer are discussed.

A fabrication method comprising near-field holography (NFH) with an electron beam lithography (EBL)-written phase mask was developed to fabricate soft X-ray varied-line-spacing gratings (VLSGs). An EBL-written phase mask with an area of 52 mm × 30 mm and a central line density greater than 3000 lines mm−1 was used. The introduction of the EBL-written phase mask substantially simplified the NFH optics for pattern transfer. The characterization of the groove density distribution and diffraction efficiency of the fabricated VLSGs indicates that the EBL–NFH method is feasible and promising for achieving high-accuracy groove density distributions with corresponding image properties. Vertical stray light is suppressed in the soft X-ray spectral range.

A new method based on time-resolved X-ray diffraction is proposed in order to measure the elastic strain and stress during ultrasonic fatigue loading experiments. Pure Cu was chosen as an example material for the experiments using a 20 kHz ultrasonic fatigue machine mounted on the six-circle diffractometer available at the DiffAbs beamline on the SOLEIL synchrotron facility in France. A two-dimensional hybrid pixel X-ray detector (XPAD3.2) was triggered by the strain gage signal in a synchronous data acquisition scheme (pump–probe-like). The method enables studying loading cycles with a period of 50 µs, achieving a temporal resolution of 1 µs. This allows a precise reconstruction of the diffraction patterns during the loading cycles. From the diffraction patterns, the position of the peaks, their shifts and their respective broadening can be deduced. The diffraction peak shift allows the elastic lattice strain to be estimated with a resolution of ∼10−5. Stress is calculated by the self-consistent scale-transition model through which the elastic response of the material is estimated. The amplitudes of the cyclic stresses range from 40 to 120 MPa and vary linearly with respect to the displacement applied by the ultrasonic machine. Moreover, the experimental results highlight an increase of the diffraction peak broadening with the number of applied cycles.

Being able to visualize biology at the molecular level is essential for our understanding of the world. A structural biology approach reveals the molecular basis of disease processes and can guide the design of new drugs as well as aid in the optimization of existing medicines. However, due to the lack of a synchrotron light source, adequate infrastructure, skilled persons and incentives for scientists in addition to limited financial support, the majority of countries across the African continent do not conduct structural biology research. Nevertheless, with technological advances such as robotic protein crystallization and remote data collection capabilities offered by many synchrotron light sources, X-ray crystallography is now potentially accessible to Africa-based scientists. This leap in technology led to the establishment in 2017 of BioStruct-Africa, a non-profit organization (Swedish corporate ID: 802509-6689) whose core aim is capacity building for African students and researchers in the field of structural biology with a focus on prevalent diseases in the African continent. The team is mainly composed of, but not limited to, a group of structural biologists from the African diaspora. The members of BioStruct-Africa have taken up the mantle to serve as a catalyst in order to facilitate the information and technology transfer to those with the greatest desire and need within Africa. BioStruct-Africa achieves this by organizing workshops onsite at our partner universities and institutions based in Africa, followed by post-hoc online mentoring of participants to ensure sustainable capacity building. The workshops provide a theoretical background on protein crystallography, hands-on practical experience in protein crystallization, crystal harvesting and cryo-cooling, live remote data collection on a synchrotron beamline, but most importantly the links to drive further collaboration through research. Capacity building for Africa-based researchers in structural biology is crucial to win the fight against the neglected tropical diseases, e.g. ascariasis, hookworm, trichuriasis, lymphatic filariasis, active trachoma, loiasis, yellow fever, leprosy, rabies, sleeping sickness, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, etc., that constitute significant health, social and economic burdens to the continent. BioStruct-Africa aims to build local and national expertise that will have direct benefits for healthcare within the continent.

A multi-color light source is a significant tool for nonlinear optics experiments, pump–dump/repump–probe experiments and in other fields. Here, a novel method is proposed to create three-color pulses based on a high-gain harmonic-generation (HGHG) free-electron laser with a tilted electron bunch. In this method, the initial bunch tilt is created by transverse wakefields after the bunch passes through a corrugated structure with an off-axis orbit, and is further enlarged in a following drift section. Then the tilted bunch experiences the off-axis field of a quadrupole magnet to cool down the large transverse velocity induced before. After that, it enters an HGHG configuration adopting a transverse gradient undulator (TGU) as the radiator, where only three separated fractions of the tilted bunch will resonate at three adjacent harmonics of the seed wavelength and are enabled to emit three-color pulses simultaneously. In addition, the use of the natural transverse gradient of a normal planar undulator instead of the TGU radiator to emit three-color pulses is also studied in detail. Numerical simulations including the generation of the tilted bunch and the free-electron laser radiation confirm the validity and feasibility of this scheme both for the TGU radiator and the natural gradient in the extreme-ultraviolet waveband.

Efficient sample delivery is an essential aspect of serial crystallography at both synchrotrons and X-ray free-electron lasers. Rastering fixed target chips through the X-ray beam is an efficient method for serial delivery from the perspectives of both sample consumption and beam time usage. Here, an approach for loading fixed targets using acoustic drop ejection is presented that does not compromise crystal quality, can reduce sample consumption by more than an order of magnitude and allows serial diffraction to be collected from a larger proportion of the crystals in the slurry.

A simple approach exploits quantum properties to justify the dependence on γ4 of the total synchrotron emitted power. It also clarifies some apparent puzzles and brings to light the underlying, multiple relativistic phenomena.

X-ray double-crystal monochromators face a shift of the exit beam when the Bragg angle and thus the transmitted photon energy changes. This can be compensated for by moving one or both crystals accordingly. In the case of monolithic channel-cut crystals, which exhibit utmost stability, the shift of the monochromated beam is inevitable. Here we report performance tests of novel, asymmetrically cut, channel-cut crystals which reduce the beam movements by more than a factor of 20 relative to the symmetric case over the typical energy range of an EXAFS spectrum at the Cu K-edge. In addition, the presented formulas for the beam offset including the asymmetry angle directly indicate the importance of this value, which has been commonly neglected so far in the operation of double-crystal monochromators.

Calibration of area detectors from powder diffraction standards is widely used at synchrotron beamlines. From a single diffraction image, it is not possible to determine both the sample-to-detector distance and the wavelength, but, with images taken from multiple positions along the beam direction and where the relative displacement is known, the sample-to-detector distance and wavelength can both be determined with good precision. An example calibration using the GSAS-II software package is presented.

Following the recent demonstration of grazing-incidence X-ray fluorescence (GIXRF)-based characterization of the 3D atomic distribution of different elements and dimensional parameters of periodic nanoscale structures, this work presents a new computational scheme for the simulation of the angular-dependent fluorescence intensities from such periodic 2D and 3D nanoscale structures. The computational scheme is based on the dynamical diffraction theory in many-beam approximation, which allows a semi-analytical solution to the Sherman equation to be derived in a linear-algebraic form. The computational scheme has been used to analyze recently published GIXRF data measured on 2D Si3N4 lamellar gratings, as well as on periodically structured 3D Cr nanopillars. Both the dimensional and structural parameters of these nanostructures have been reconstructed by fitting numerical simulations to the experimental GIXRF data. Obtained results show good agreement with nominal parameters used in the manufacturing of the structures, as well as with reconstructed parameters based on the previously published finite-element-method simulations, in the case of the Si3N4 grating.

A new diamond-anvil cell apparatus for in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements of liquids and glasses, at pressures from ambient to 5 GPa and temperatures from ambient to 1300 K, is reported. This portable setup enables in situ monitoring of the melting of complex compounds and the determination of the structure and properties of melts under moderately high pressure and high temperature conditions relevant to industrial processes and magmatic processes in the Earth's crust and shallow mantle. The device was constructed according to a modified Bassett-type hydro­thermal diamond-anvil cell design with a large angular opening (θ = 95°). This paper reports the successful application of this device to record in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction of liquid Ga and synthetic PbSiO3 glass to 1100 K and 3 GPa.

A simple two-spindle based lathe system for the preparation of cylindrical samples intended for X-ray tomography is presented. The setup can operate at room temperature as well as under cryogenic conditions, allowing the preparation of samples down to 20 and 50 µm in diameter, respectively, within minutes. Case studies are presented involving the preparation of a brittle biomineral brachiopod shell and cryogenically fixed soft brain tissue, and their examination by means of ptychographic X-ray computed tomography reveals the preparation method to be mainly free from causing artefacts. Since this lathe system easily yields near-cylindrical samples ideal for tomography, a usage for a wide variety of otherwise challenging specimens is anticipated, in addition to potential use as a time- and cost-saving tool prior to focused ion-beam milling. Fast sample preparation becomes especially important in relation to shorter measurement times expected in next-generation synchrotron sources.

The high temporal resolution in data acquisition, possible in the quick-scanning EXAFS (QEXAFS) mode of operation, provides new challenges in efficient data processing methods. Here a new approach is developed that combines an easy to use interactive graphical interface with highly optimized and fully parallelized Python-based routines for extracting, normalizing and interpolating oversampled time-resolved XAS spectra from a raw binary stream of data acquired during operando QEXAFS studies. The programs developed are freely available via a Github repository.

A new resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) instrument has been constructed at beamline P01 of the PETRA III synchrotron. This instrument has been named IRIXS (intermediate X-ray energy RIXS) and is dedicated to X-rays in the tender-energy regime (2.5–3.5 keV). The range covers the L2,3 absorption edges of many of the 4d elements (Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd and Ag), offering a unique opportunity to study their low-energy magnetic and charge excitations. The IRIXS instrument is currently operating at the Ru L3-edge (2840 eV) but can be extended to the other 4d elements using the existing concept. The incoming photons are monochromated with a four-bounce Si(111) monochromator, while the energy analysis of the outgoing photons is performed by a diced spherical crystal analyzer featuring (102) lattice planes of quartz (SiO2). A total resolution of 100 meV (full width at half-maximum) has been achieved at the Ru L3-edge, a number that is in excellent agreement with ray-tracing simulations.

In transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM) systems, the rotation of a scanned sample might be restricted to a limited angular range to avoid collision with other system parts or high attenuation at certain tilting angles. Image reconstruction from such limited angle data suffers from artifacts because of missing data. In this work, deep learning is applied to limited angle reconstruction in TXMs for the first time. With the challenge to obtain sufficient real data for training, training a deep neural network from synthetic data is investigated. In particular, U-Net, the state-of-the-art neural network in biomedical imaging, is trained from synthetic ellipsoid data and multi-category data to reduce artifacts in filtered back-projection (FBP) reconstruction images. The proposed method is evaluated on synthetic data and real scanned chlorella data in 100° limited angle tomography. For synthetic test data, U-Net significantly reduces the root-mean-square error (RMSE) from 2.55 × 10−3 µm−1 in the FBP reconstruction to 1.21 × 10−3 µm−1 in the U-Net reconstruction and also improves the structural similarity (SSIM) index from 0.625 to 0.920. With penalized weighted least-square denoising of measured projections, the RMSE and SSIM are further improved to 1.16 × 10−3 µm−1 and 0.932, respectively. For real test data, the proposed method remarkably improves the 3D visualization of the subcellular structures in the chlorella cell, which indicates its important value for nanoscale imaging in biology, nanoscience and materials science.

X-ray absorption linear dichroism of rutile TiO2 at the Ti K-edge provides information about the electronic states involved in the pre-edge transitions. Here, linear dichroism with high energy resolution is analyzed in combination with ab initio finite difference method calculations and spherical tensor analysis. It provides an assignment of the three pre-edge peaks beyond the octahedral crystal field splitting approximation and estimates the spatial extension of the corresponding final states. It is then discussed for the first time the X-ray absorption (XAS) of pentacoordinated titanium atoms due to oxygen vacancies and it is found that, similarly to anatase TiO2, rutile is expected to exhibit a transition on the low-energy side of peak A3. Its apparent absence in the experiment is related to the degree of p–d orbital mixing which is small in rutile due to its centrosymmetric point group. A recent XAS linear dichroism study on anatase TiO2 single crystals has shown that peak A2 has an intrinsic origin and is due to a quadrupolar transition to the 3d energy levels. In rutile, due to its centrosymmetric point group, the corresponding peak A2 has a small dipole moment explaining the weak transition. The results are confronted with recent picosecond X-ray absorption spectroscopy on rutile TiO2 nanoparticles.

Serial synchrotron crystallography (SSX) is an emerging technique for static and time-resolved protein structure determination. Using specifically patterned silicon chips for sample delivery, the `hit-and-return' (HARE) protocol allows for efficient time-resolved data collection. The specific pattern of the crystal wells in the HARE chip provides direct access to many discrete time points. HARE chips allow for optical excitation as well as on-chip mixing for reaction initiation, making a large number of protein systems amenable to time-resolved studies. Loading of protein microcrystals onto the HARE chip is streamlined by a novel vacuum loading platform that allows fine-tuning of suction strength while maintaining a humid environment to prevent crystal dehydration. To enable the widespread use of time-resolved serial synchrotron crystallography (TR-SSX), detailed technical descriptions of a set of accessories that facilitate TR-SSX workflows are provided.

The time evolution of the electron density and the resulting time dependence of the X-ray polarizability of a crystal irradiated by highly intense XFEL femtosecond pulses is investigated theoretically. Rate equations for bound electrons and the Boltzmann equation for the unbound electron gas are used in calculations.

Contributions of experimental and selected theoretical charge-density research to medicinal chemistry are reviewed; combining experimental methods from high-resolution small-molecule and macromolecular crystallography with theory proves to be fruitful.

Melting of the semicrystalline structure of native tapioca starch granules is correlated to solution viscosity for elucidating gelatinization and gelation processes.

A method is presented for the automatic building of nucleotide chains into electron density which is fast enough to be used in interactive model-building software. Likely nucleotides lying in the vicinity of the current view are located and then grown into connected chains in a fraction of a second. When this development is combined with existing tools, assisted manual model building is as simple as or simpler than for proteins.

It has been revealed that in cylindrical nano-confinement, the hydrogen-bonding direction of nylon-12 crystals in the rod could self-assemble to be parallel to the long axis of the rod. The dominant growth direction and hydrogen-bonding direction of the γ-form crystal in the long axis of the rod has been revealed by TEM–SAED and WAXD.

Rietveld/MEM analysis applied to synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction data of dehydrated CHA zeolites with catalytically active Cu2+ reveals Cu2+ in both the six- and eight-membered rings in the CHA framework, providing the first complete structural model that accounts for all Cu2+. Density functional theory calculations are used to corroborate the experimental structure and to discuss the Cu2+ coordination in terms of the Al distribution in the framework.

An expectation maximization algorithm is implemented to resolve the indexing ambiguity which arises when merging data from many crystals in protein crystallography, especially in cases where partial reflections are recorded in serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) at XFELs.

A neutron crystallographic study of perdeuterated transthyretin reveals important aspects of the structure relating to its stability and its propensity to form fibrils, as well as evidence of a single water molecule that affects the symmetry of the two binding pockets.

A novel sample cell with control of temperature and relative humidity permitted collection of data of excellent quality, enabling unrestrained refinement of all atomic parameters. One of the K atoms in the structure is disordered; very strong anisotropy in three of the four water O atoms indicates partial static disorder, which does not involve the bonded H atoms.

The day Folkestone was rocked by one of Kent's worst ever earthquakes  Kent Live

Fracking in the UK was doomed a decade ago – Tories have wasted precious time on a fossil fuel fantasy  The Conversation UK

151 homes for Keyworth recommended for approval by council  West Bridgford Wire

Coronavirus shock: Pandemic lockdowns have changed how the planet SOUNDS and vibrates  Express.co.uk

Impacts on groundwater quality from abandoned hydrocarbon wells  GOV.UK

Compasses at Greenwich Are About to Do Something Not Observed in Over 300 Years  ScienceAlert

What is a sinkhole and are they caused by bad weather?  expressandstar.com

Isle of Mull earthquake compared to low-flying jet  BBC News

Small earthquake recorded in Stirling on Christmas Day  Daily Record

'Surrey swarm' quakes 'not caused by oil extraction'  BBC News

Largest tremor yet detected at Lancashire fracking site  ITV News