SwissFEL at PSI enables record-cold quantum measurements

Scientists at SwissFEL recently measured a temperature of 35 millikelvin, just 35 thousandths of a degree above absolute zero, representing the coldest temperature ever achieved during X-ray scattering measurements, to their knowledge, the company says. This feat, enabled by the custom cryostat within the Cristallina experimental station at SwissFEL, allows researchers to study quantum states, as Simon Gerber of the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI explains. The team utilizes ultra-intense X-ray pulses lasting only tens of femtoseconds to capture snapshots of these delicate states before radiation damage occurs, a technique known as diffraction before destruction. “Our vision is to use the SwissFEL to image…