From Water's Secrets to New Materials: Pohang's Light Solves Scientific Puzzles

Pohang's 4th generation synchrotron radiation accelerator marks its 10th anniversary this year, having been completed in 2016. This facility has been instrumental in verifying fundamental scientific theories through experimental evidence. Its contributions span diverse fields including chemistry, materials science, quantum physics, and biology, yielding significant breakthroughs.

The Pohang 4th generation accelerator is a linear accelerator that uses electric fields to accelerate charged particles, specifically electrons, to near light speed. This process generates X-rays, a form of radiation. By detecting the scattered or diffracted light from a sample, researchers can analyze minute structures and observe changes occurring in extremely short timeframes. It effectively acts as a colossal microscope, capable of producing light far brighter than the sun and tracking molecular motion with picosecond precision.

Globally, facilities with comparable capabilities are scarce, with only five existing in the United States, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, and South Korea. The Pohang accelerator, with an approximate construction cost of 400 billion won, is recognized as a vital platform for experimentally proving numerous hypotheses that have previously existed only in theoretical realms. The competitive demand for access highlights its importance, with only three to four out of ten research teams typically securing beamtime.