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Media Contacts
![Postdoctoral researcher Nischal Kafle positions a component for a portable plasma imaging diagnostic device at ORNL in February. The device, a project for ARPA-E, is built of off-the-shelf parts. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-03/2020-P00808.jpg?h=8f9cfe54&itok=TGI-lQiS)
The techniques Theodore Biewer and his colleagues are using to measure whether plasma has the right conditions to create fusion have been around awhile.
![Starch granules](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-02/starchgranules.png?h=0c9ab501&itok=eLsE3JOx)
Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new method to peer deep into the nanostructure of biomaterials without damaging the sample. This novel technique can confirm structural features in starch, a carbohydrate important in biofuel production.
![Edge computing is both dependent on and greatly influencing a host of promising technologies including (clockwise from top left): quantum computing; high-performance computing; neuromorphic computing; and carbon nanotubes.](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-02/Jones%20image%202-12-20.png?h=2e876d46&itok=fT3y4uz9)
We have a data problem. Humanity is now generating more data than it can handle; more sensors, smartphones, and devices of all types are coming online every day and contributing to the ever-growing global dataset.
![ORNL researchers developed sodium-ion batteries by pairing a high-energy oxide or phosphate cathode with a hard carbon anode and achieved 100 usage cycles at a one-hour charge and discharge rate. Credit: Mengya Li/Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-02/Sodium-ion_batteries_thumb.jpg?h=d91dfa5a&itok=gPCNMJ6R)
Researchers at ORNL demonstrated that sodium-ion batteries can serve as a low-cost, high performance substitute for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries commonly used in robotics, power tools, and grid-scale energy storage.
![A new computational approach by ORNL can more quickly scan large-scale satellite images, such as these of Puerto Rico, for more accurate mapping of complex infrastructure like buildings. Credit: Maxar Technologies and Dalton Lunga/Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-02/Puerto_Rico_Resflow9.png?h=a0a1befd&itok=5n2fss_e)
A novel approach developed by scientists at ORNL can scan massive datasets of large-scale satellite images to more accurately map infrastructure – such as buildings and roads – in hours versus days.
![Peter Wang](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-01/2019-P18026_0.jpg?h=8f9cfe54&itok=_gPTJOy-)
Peter Wang is focused on robotics and automation at the Department of Energy’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL, working on high-profile projects such as the MedUSA, a large-scale hybrid additive manufacturing machine.
![microscope lens and lithium battery prototype](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-01/Lithium%20Battery%20Research%2020183101_6400_0.jpg?h=58c8a5e7&itok=v-7_CmEt)
The formation of lithium dendrites is still a mystery, but materials engineers study the conditions that enable dendrites and how to stop them.
![Researchers in ORNL’s Quantum Information Science group summarized their significant contributions to quantum networking and quantum computing in a special issue of Optics & Photonics News. Image credit: Christopher Tison and Michael Fanto/Air Force Research Laboratory.](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-01/DSC02403_0.jpg?h=da4d8213&itok=o3kOwP6p)
A team from the ORNL has conducted a series of experiments to gain a better understanding of quantum mechanics and pursue advances in quantum networking and quantum computing, which could lead to practical applications in cybersecurity and other areas.
![ORNL-developed cryogenic memory cell circuit designs fabricated onto these small chips by SeeQC, a superconducting technology company, successfully demonstrated read, write and reset memory functions. Credit: Carlos Jones/Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-01/2019-P17636.png?h=39b94f55&itok=udTwXJwT)
Scientists at have experimentally demonstrated a novel cryogenic, or low temperature, memory cell circuit design based on coupled arrays of Josephson junctions, a technology that may be faster and more energy efficient than existing memory devices.
![Geothermal energy storage system](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-01/Geothermal_graphic_0.jpg?h=f9060f2b&itok=W6LxcJwG)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers created a geothermal energy storage system that could reduce peak electricity demand up to 37% in homes while helping balance grid operations.