http://www.helmholtz-berlin.de/user/experimental-infrastructures/sample-environment/index_en.html
The Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin is running two large scale facilities, the neutron source BER II and the Synchrotron BESSY II. Presently, the sample environment department of the HZB is mainly supporting the operation at the neutron source but experiments at the synchrotron source are supported as well on a regular base.
Sample environment at the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin is traditionally focused on extreme parameters like low temperatures or high magnetic fields, combined with a strong user support. Strengthening this expertise, the HZB is presently undertaking the project to build a high field magnet for neutron scattering. In addition, two growing trends in neutron scattering are leading to the situation that the focus of sample environment is more and more shifted away from just providing standard (or even extreme) parameters. First, the increasing complexity of some the neutron experiments require the combination of neutron scattering techniques with complementary in-situ experiments or with in-situ sample preparation. Second, new user communities, especially in the area of soft matter, biology and solid state chemistry push the development of novel specialized sample environment which is far from being standardized. In both cases sample environment is becoming a more important and more complex part of the neutron experiment itself. Sample environment at the HZB does already support these new developments and will further strengthen its efforts on these areas of research.
HZB’s Strengths in Sample Environment:
- Extreme conditions (high magnetic fields, low temperatures)
- Controlled gas atmospheres (from humidity to hydrogen)
- Special sample enviroment for soft matter and biology
- In-situ experiments (from resistivity measurements to chemical reactions)
- Synergy with supporting labs (MagLab-LaMMB, GasLab-DEGAS, BioLab)