Biological applications at the AQUA beamline of the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB free electron laser
The EuPRAXIA project is a European initiative aimed at developing groundbreaking, ultra-compact accelerator research infrastructures based on novel plasma acceleration concepts. The EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB facility, located in the Italian National Institute for Nuclear Physics-Frascati National Laboratory, will be the first operating Free Electron Laser facility of EuPRAXIA, based on an accelerator module driven by an electron bunch driver. The Free Electron Laser will produce ultra-short photon pulses in the soft X-ray region. The photons will be delivered to an endstation, called AQUA, to perform a wide range of experiments in atomic and molecular physics, chemistry, and life sciences for both academic and industrial users. Thanks to its wavelength, which falls within the so-called 'water window', AQUA will be particularly well-suited for coherent imaging and ion spectroscopy measurements on biological samples at room temperature in a fully hydrated environment. This unique capability opens up innovative experimental schemes for studying biological systems in states that closely resemble their physiological conditions. This paper presents numerical simulations of coherent diffraction imaging and Coulomb explosion imaging experiments, anticipating future studies at AQUA on biological samples.
Authors
- A. Marcelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8138-7547)
- M. Ferrario (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1105-0359)
- Nicuşor Tı̂mneanu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7328-0400)
- Velia Minicozzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9851-9932)
- Emiliano Principi
- Francesco Stellato (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8102-7982)
- Carl Caleman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2638-1940)
- Emiliano De Santis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5029-7429)
- Richard Bean (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8151-7439)
- Stefania Alleva
- Tomas André (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7921-1032)
Institutions
- University of Rome Tor Vergata (IT)
- Uppsala University (SE)
- Universität Hamburg (DE)
- AREA Science Park (IT)
- Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A. (IT)
- Rome International Center for Materials Science (IT)
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati (IT)
- Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (DE)
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Roma I (IT)
- European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- European Biophysics Journal
- Published
- 2025-07-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00249-025-01778-4
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Advanced X-ray Imaging Techniques
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.88
Funders
- European Commission
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
- Vetenskapsrådet
- Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale
- Helmholtz Association
- Röntgen-Ångström Cluster
- Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration
- HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron
- Horizon 2020