CONEXS: COllaborative NEtwork for X-ray Spectroscopy

Scientific breakthroughs are strongly associated with technological developments, which enable the measurement of matter to an increased level of detail. A prime example of this is the development of femtosecond lasers, which opened up the field of ultrafast spectroscopy. This had a huge impact on our understanding of chemical reactions, biological functions and phase transitions in materials owing to their ability to probe, in real-time, the nuclear motion within these different types of systems.

A modern revolution is underway in X-ray science with the emergence of tools capable of delivering high-brilliance ultrashort pulses of X-rays. The UK, through the Diamond Light source, investment into the European X-FEL and world-leading research groups are at the forefront of these experimental endeavors. Crucially, the complicated nature and high information context of X-ray spectroscopic observables means that a strong synergy between experiment and theory is required. However, despite the development of new theoretical methods, the exploitation of the high level methods remains relatively uncommon resulting in the full potential of the experiments not being realised. This status-quo is unacceptable, and overcoming it is one of the primary objectives of the COllaborative NEtwork for X-ray Spectroscopy (CONEXS), which will bring together experimentalists and theoreticians working in this area to achieve new levels of understanding. From the perspective of the computational community, direct engagement with experimentalists can highlight theoretical challenges and act as a catalyst for the development of new methods. From the experimental community, direct engagement with theoreticians will provide expertise in the new theoretical developments providing new opportunities for data analysis.

The aim of the COllaborative NEtwork for X-ray Spectroscopy (CONEXS) is to nurture a strong synergy between experiment and theory in all research areas relevant to X-ray spectroscopy ensuring maximum impact from the UK's research and investment in this area. The main impact of this network will therefore be to overcome one of the major limitations in the field of X-ray spectroscopy, namely the often-disjointed approach by which experimental and theoretical groups work.

The relevance of X-ray Spectroscopy to a wide field of research domains leads to a large scope of potential beneficiaries. All of whom will have the opportunities to join or access the information related to CONEXS. In the short term (<2 years) the most likely beneficiaries will be academic researchers, both theoretical and experimental. In the immediate term this will be the initial members of the network. However, networking events, workshops and conferences will ensure that these benefits are effectively disseminated and are extended to include the wider X-ray user community within the UK. This will provide the impetus for researchers in research areas, such as Materials for Energy Applications, Catalysis, Chemical Biology and Biological Chemistry, Energy Storage and Solar Energy that X-ray spectroscopy all of which wide use X-ray spectroscopy.

In the mid (2-5 years) and long-term (>5 years), it is expected a wider academic user base and the commercial private sector, most likely in the aforementioned research areas. This will be achieved by the development of a virtual beam line at Diamond Light Source (DLS), whose aim will be to work alongside the physical beamlines leading to an increased capacity for interpretation of complex experimental data. Once successfully demonstrated for X-ray spectroscopy, this concept of a virtual beam line will be extended into other areas of X-ray science, including diffraction and imaging.