Exactly how that process works at the microscopic level is not well understood.

Answering this question could have a big impact on both plant ecology and agriculture, which is why professors Kathryn and Jonathan Morris from Xavier University are using neutron scattering at the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to observe firsthand how these info-chemicals travel along tiny, pipe-like networks called fungal hyphae. Whether the messages move passively along the outside of those fungal networks or the fungi deliberately locate and absorb info-chemicals for transportation remains unclear.

“During this process of understanding what limits proton conduction in existing materials, we hope to also discover some new physics,” Ganesh said. “It’s all related to underlying atomistic mechanisms.”

To validate the computational results, members of the team conducted a series of complementary experiments that employed pulsed laser deposition, scanning transmission electron microscopy, time-resolved Kelvin probe force microscopy, and atom probe tomography techniques at CNMS, as well as neutron scattering at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS). CNMS, SNS, and the OLCF are all DOE Office of Science User Facilities located at ORNL.

Scientists have used neutron scattering to identify the secret to a metal-organic framework’s (MOF) ability to efficiently convert chemicals, through a process called catalysis, into new substances. By probing a material known as MOF-808-SO4, the team discovered molecular behavior that causes the catalyst to become less acidic, which could slow down the catalytic process vital in making products such as plastics, fragrances, cosmetics, flame retardants and solvents.