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December 2023 ESRFnews

Gianluigi Botton

has been named the

new chief executive

officer of Diamond

Light Source in the

UK. An expert in

microscopy and

spectroscopy, Botton

has an impressive

track record in

research and funding,

having secured more than $50m as a principal

investigator and $90m as a co-investigator;

he also has more than 350 peer-reviewed

publications, cited more than 34,000 times.

Olof Karis has been

named as the new

director of the MAX

IV synchrotron

in Sweden Karis

has been interim

director of the same

facility since March

2022 and has led

the completion of its

strategic plan for the

next decade he has also navigated increased

running costs His focus is to make a case for

longerterm funding for research that keeps

our society strong in facing future challenges

Shoji Asai has been

named as the next

director general of

KEK, the Japanese

particle-physics

lab. Currently

director of the

International Center

for Elementary

Particle Physics at the

University of Tokyo,

Asai has worked extensively on the analysis of

data from the LHC’s ATLAS detector, as well

on tabletop particle-physics experiments, to

search for deviations from the Standard Model.

Thomas Feurer

has been named as

the new chair of the

management board

of the European

Xray Free Electron

Laser in Germany

Feurer has been

a professor at the

University of Bern

since 2004 where

he heads the Institute for Applied Physics

specialising in laser physics and ultrafast

spectroscopy He will take over from Prof

Robert Feidenhansl on 1 January 2024

X-ray spectroscopy of magnetic

materials

11–13 December 2023

The ESRF–EBS is delivering polarised

X-rays with unprecedented brightness,

greatly strengthening capabilities in

exploiting advanced spectroscopy tools for

the magnetism community. This 2.5 day

workshop will allow for a comprehensive

view of the latest achievements and

envisioned developments in absorption and

emission X-ray spectroscopic techniques

applied to magnetic materials. During the

meeting, experts will seek to highlight the

emerging new opportunities for magnetism

research offered by the ESRF–EBS as well

as upcoming upgrades at other synchrotron

radiation facilities. The workshop is

open to all interested researchers, but the

number of participants will be limited to

approximately 60.

New opportunities in diffraction

microscopy

8–11 January 2024

The primary objectives of this workshop

are to foster the growth of the user

community for the newly upgraded

Dark-Field X-ray Microscope (DFXM)

instrument at the EBS flagship ID03

beamline (see p12), and to define the

scientific cases for a potential future

upgrade of optics at ID11. Over four days,

it aims to highlight the complementarities

of these two beamlines, and to explore

avenues for collaborative advancements,

especially in the areas of sample

environments and data-analysis platforms.

In doing so, the organisers of the workshop

hope to outline a developmental path

forward for this exciting diffraction-

contrast imaging modality for cutting-edge

materials-centred research.

ESRF User Meeting 2024

5–7 February 2024

The 33rd ESRF User Meeting took place on

site in February 2023, marking the return

to in-person gatherings after two years of

remote meetings. Scientists came from

all across Europe, engaging in discussions

and sharing ideas over a communal buffet

– indeed the meeting set a new record for

attendance, and we look forward to the

same level of participation in the 2024

ESRF User Meeting. There, users will

find valuable opportunities for training in

data analysis through tutorials; they will

also benefit from cutting-edge scientific

presentations showcasing the capabilities

of ESRF beamlines. Additionally, micro-

symposia offer a platform for gathering with

scientific communities , and there will be the

presentation of the annual, hotly anticipated

Young Scientist Award.

EVENTS

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Ken Anderson

has been named

director of the

Institut Laue-

Langevin (ILL),

replacing Paul

Langan, who

has been in

the post since

2021. Andersen

is currently

the associate

laboratory

director for neutron sciences at the US

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL),

overseeing the operation and management

of two neutron facilities: the Spallation

Neutron Source and the High Flux Isotope

Reactor Previously he was director of

the neutron technologies division within

the ORNLs neutron sciences directorate

Between 2010 and 2019 he was head of the

neutron instruments division at the European

Spallation Source in Lund Sweden prior to

that he oversaw the neutron optics lab at ILL

and has worked as an instrument scientist at

both ILL and the ISIS Neutron and Muon

Source in the UK The ILL is a really special

place for me he said Professionally its

where I come from and its where I grew up

Its a place I care deeply about