The mission of SEES (Synchrotron Earth and Environmental Science) is to advance research and education in synchrotron-based Earth and environmental science to better understand our planet from the atmosphere to the core, to address societally relevant problems, and to train the next generation of scientists. SEES is responsible for the management, operation, and development of multiple user facilities hosted at four DOE-operated US synchrotrons: Advanced Photon Source (APS), Advanced Light Source (ALS), National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II), and Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL).
2025 SEES-ISRD Joint Meeting
SEES and ISRD invite you to attend our annual meeting to be held jointly at the University of Chicago on August 11-13, 2025. Keynote speakers will discuss topics in rock and mineral deformation and rheological properties in Earth, and there will be a poster session with a broad scientific focus. All SEES and ISRD researchers are welcome and encouraged to attend. Click here to learn more.
Recent Publications
Superconductivity and phase stability of a high-entropy (NbTa)0.55(HfTiZr)0.45 alloy under high pressures
Kallol Chakrabarty, Thomas Freeman, Greeshma C. Jose, Francisco J. Canales, James L. Petri, Elizabeth C. Thompson, Wenli Bi, Abhinav Yadav, Vijaya Rangari, Yogesh K. Vohra; Superconductivity and phase stability of a high-entropy (NbTa)0.55(HfTiZr)0.45 alloy under high pressures. J. Appl. Phys. 7 June 2025; 137 (21): 215901. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0265943
Interplay Between Metastability and Mechanically Induced Structural Instability in CsPbBr3 Photovoltaic Perovskite
Sizhan Liu, Sandun Amarasinghe, Mo Li, Stella Chariton, Vitali B. Prakapenka, Sanjit K. Ghose, Yong Yan, Joshua Young, and Trevor A. Tyson, Interplay Between Metastability and Mechanically Induced Structural Instability in CsPbBr3 Photovoltaic Perovskite, ACS Applied Energy Materials Article ASAP DOI: 10.1021/acsaem.5c00303
Extending tetrahedral network similarity to carbon: A type-I carbon clathrate stabilized by boron
Strobel, Timothy A., Tiange Bi, Piotr A. Guńka, Mads F. Hansen, Julia-Maria Hübner, Samuel G. Dunning, Li Zhu, Stella Chariton, Vitali B. Prakapenka, and Yue Meng. “Extending tetrahedral network similarity to carbon: A type-I carbon clathrate stabilized by boron.” Science Advances 11, no. 21 (2025).
Photochemically Induced Co-oxidation of Aqueous Manganese and Cobalt and the Formation of Cobalt-Incorporated Manganese Oxides
Zhenwei Gao, Gwan Yeong Jung, Ping-I Chou, Olaf J. Borkiewicz, Matthew Newville, Rohan Mishra, and Young-Shin Jun, Photochemically Induced Co-oxidation of Aqueous Manganese and Cobalt and the Formation of Cobalt-Incorporated Manganese Oxides, Environmental Science & Technology Article ASAP
The origin of vertebrate teeth and evolution of sensory exoskeletons
Haridy, Yara, Sam CP Norris, Matteo Fabbri, Karma Nanglu, Neelima Sharma, James F. Miller, Mark Rivers, Patrick La Riviere, Phillip Vargas, Javier Ortega-Hernandez, Neil H. Shubin, “The origin of vertebrate teeth and evolution of sensory exoskeletons.” Nature (2025): 1-6.
Raman scattering of rhenium for secondary pressure calibration
Allison Pease, Claire Zurkowski, Stella Chariton, Heidi N. Krauss, Daniel Sneed, Vitali Prakapenka, Bruce Baer, Susannah M. Dorfman, Earl F. O’Bannon; Raman scattering of rhenium for secondary pressure calibration. J. Appl. Phys. 21 May 2025; 137 (19): 195901.
Science Highlights
Extending tetrahedral network similarity to carbon: A type-I carbon clathrate stabilized by boron
Strobel, Timothy A., Tiange Bi, Piotr A. Guńka, Mads F. Hansen, Julia-Maria Hübner, Samuel G. Dunning, Li Zhu, Stella Chariton, Vitali B. Prakapenka, and Yue Meng. “Extending tetrahedral network similarity to carbon: A type-I carbon clathrate stabilized by boron.” Science Advances 11, no. 21 (2025).
Photochemically Induced Co-oxidation of Aqueous Manganese and Cobalt and the Formation of Cobalt-Incorporated Manganese Oxides
Zhenwei Gao, Gwan Yeong Jung, Ping-I Chou, Olaf J. Borkiewicz, Matthew Newville, Rohan Mishra, and Young-Shin Jun, Photochemically Induced Co-oxidation of Aqueous Manganese and Cobalt and the Formation of Cobalt-Incorporated Manganese Oxides, Environmental Science & Technology Article ASAP
The origin of vertebrate teeth and evolution of sensory exoskeletons
Link to Article | Link to UChicago News Haridy, Y., Norris, S.C.P., Fabbri, M. et al. The origin of vertebrate teeth and evolution...
The Viscosity of Albitic Melt at High Pressures andImplications for the Mobility of Crust‐Forming Magmas
Ashley, A. W., Mookherjee, M., Xu, M., Yu, T., Manthilake, G., & Wang, Y. (2025). The viscosity of albitic melt at high pressures and implications for the mobility of crust-forming magmas. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 130, e2024JB030527.
Structure of ice VII with Hirshfeld atom refinement
Gajda, R., Chodkiewicz, M., Zhang, D., Nguyen, P., Prakapenka, V. & Wozniak, K., Structure of ice VII with Hirshfeld atom refinement, (2025). IUCrJ, 12. https://doi.org/10.1107/S2052252525002581
Belowground plant carbon and nitrogen exchange: plant-derived carbon inputs and pore structure formation
Jin Ho Lee, Tayler C. Ulbrich, Maxwell Oerther, Yakov Kuzyakov, Andrey K. Guber, Alexandra N. Kravchenko, Belowground plant carbon and nitrogen exchange: plant-derived carbon inputs and pore structure formation, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, Volume 207, 2025, 109833, ISSN 0038-0717, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2025.109833.
Latest Happenings

2025 CONUSS/PHOENIX School Wrap-Up
Bringing together passionate learners and experts alike, our recent intensive three-day school,...

SEES Beamlines at the APS for 2025-3 Cycle
The Advanced Photon Source (APS) General User Proposal (GUP) call for the 2025-3 cycle will open...

Infrared Microscope Project at NSLS-II
I. Continuum Infrared Microscope at NSLS-II: BIC project updateThe BioImaging Core (BIC) of the...

The SEES community congratulates Andy Campbell, SEES Director, for his award of the Arthur L. Kelly Faculty Prize for Exceptional Service in the Physical Sciences Division, University of Chicago
As announced by Ka Yee C. Lee, Interim Dean, Physical Sciences Division, The University of Chicago...