Welcome to the Laboratory for Applications of Synchrotron Radiation (LAS) at KIT
The Laboratory for Applications of Synchrotron Radiation (LAS) (German: Laboratorium für Applikationen der Synchrotronstrahlung) develops technologies and methods for the investigation of structural and functional relationships in biological systems, condensed matter and functional materials, using synchrotron radiation and novel accelerators.
Key areas of research and development activities at LAS
- X-ray Scattering and X-ray Diffraction, especially applied to thin-films, interfaces and nanostructures
- X-ray Imaging and X-ray Diffraction Imaging for the life-sciences and materials research
- Novel accelerator technologies for the production of synchrotron radiation
- Investigation of the lattice dynamics of nanoscale materials
Our research projects involve active collaboration partners from Germany, Europe and beyond.
LAS promotes and pursues the education and training of students, doctoral researcher, and young scientists by offering lecture courses, tutorials, practicals and thesis projects in areas such as accelerator physics, materials research, and synchrotron technology.
The laboratory LAS is based at the Campus South of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), but is involved in the development of accelerators such as FLUTE and KARA, use of synchrotron radiation at the KIT synchrotron and light source, the Test Facility and Synchrotron Radiation Source at the Campus North. Members of LAS are also major users of other synchrotron radiation sources world-wide such as ESRF, DESY, ALS, and APS.

A new, very generally applicable imaging approach provides not only three-dimensional information about complex arrangements of dislocations inside monocrystals, but also allows us to investigate precisely the behavior and role of all the individual defects during plastic deformation process. Based on this methodology, we are able to shed new light on the mechanisms involved in the thermally induced plastic deformation of silicon wafers, the understanding and prediction of which is crucial for semiconductor processing in the context of present and future scientific and industrial applications.
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Time-resolved X-ray scattering with 100 picosecond time resolution shows laser-induced dynamics of gold nanorods, which are an attractive tool for biophotonics.
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Europium silicide has for some time attracted the attention of scientists. Recognized as being promising for electronics and spintronics, this material has recently been submitted by a team of physicists from Poland, Germany and France to comprehensive studies of the vibrations of its crystal lattice.
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