Ohio State hosts national researchers for NeXUS workshop

Researchers from across the country gathered at The Ohio State University for an annual workshop hosted by the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF) National eXtreme Ultrafast Science (NeXUS) Facility to share scientific discoveries and explore future research opportunities.  

“We have users and scientists from around the country gathered here to engage with us about science that’s happening at NeXUS and help us envision what the exciting possibilities can be for the future,” said Robert Baker, director of the NSF NeXUS Facility and the Timashev Professor of Chemical Physics at Ohio State. 

The NSF-supported facility uses ultrafast pulses of infrared and extreme ultraviolet light to study the behavior of electrons and materials at extremely short timescales. Its capabilities support research across several disciplines, including physics, chemistry, materials science and engineering. 

The facility also provides researchers from other institutions access to specialized scientific equipment and expertise. 

Baker said students and early-career researchers have played an important role in developing the facility. 

“The NSF NeXUS facility was originally built by graduate students and postdocs, and now we have a team of really outstanding staff members who support the users,” he said. 

Workshop participants shared research findings and explored how advanced scientific techniques could help address questions across different fields. 

Among the presenters was Bárbara Fornaciari, who recently earned her doctorate from Ohio State and now works in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. One of her doctorate experiments was performed at NeXUS. 

Fornaciari presented research examining eumelanin, a naturally occurring pigment associated with darker skin, hair and eyes that helps protect against ultraviolet radiation. Her work explores how the pigment’s structure at the nanoscale influences its semiconductor properties, which affect how it conducts electrical energy. 

“What we found out is that there is no unique gap for melanin,” Fornaciari said, describing how the energy gaps associated with its semiconductor behavior vary across the nanoparticles she studied. 

Representatives from the NSF also addressed participants, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and making advanced research tools accessible to the broader scientific community. 

John Papanikolas, an NSF program director, explained that facilities such as NeXUS differ from traditional research centers because they provide scientists from multiple institutions access to specialized equipment. 

The workshop also included breakout discussions about future applications of NeXUS, including quantum information science and the use of artificial intelligence to process research data. Feedback from participants will help inform the facility’s research priorities. 

“We’re going to get the community to help us imagine what exciting things can be done in the future. And these [quantum information and artificial intelligence] are two topics on our agenda,” Baker said.