Primers - explaining the underlaying concepts

In this section, you can find out more about the photon source and about the theory that is behind the generation of synchrotron light at a storage ring or a free-electron laser (FEL) and the experiments.

These primers give you an overview of the theory behind research with synchrotron light. To understand most of them it would be useful, but not always necessary to have some university-level education in physics.

Further information can also found in the book 'Synchrotron Light Sources and Free-Electron Lasers - Accelerator Physics, Instrumentation and Science Applications' (2020), Editors: E. Jaeschke, S. Khan, J. R. Schneider, J. B. Hastings, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-23201-6 online and also available at DESY.

Additional information can also found in the article 'Materials under extreme conditions using large X-ray facilities' (2023), Sakura Pascarelli , Malcolm McMahon, Charles Pépin, Olivier Mathon, Raymond F. Smith, Wendy L. Mao, Hanns-Peter Liermann, Paul Loubeyre, Nature Reviews Methods Primers (2023) 10.1038/s43586-023-00264-5 (via DESY/PUBDB).


Visible Part of the Synchrotron Radation at HASYLAB

Synchrotron Radiation

This primer will give you an overview of the meachanisms governing the creation of synchrotron light and the properties of the resulting light.

Experimental Techniques

Click here to find out more about the specific techniques which employ synchrotron light to probe the structure of matter.

Experimental Station P11
PETRA III

Storage Rings and Beamlines

This section explains how the components of a storage ring and a beamline work and how together they deliver synchrotron light to the experiments.