Diamond Annual Review 2025-26

The facilities use electrons and X-rays to image samples under different experimental conditions across a diverse range of length scales and time scales. The ability to image material properties in minute detail lends itself to a wide range of scientific applications, from chemistry and catalysis to environmental science, materials science, biology, medicine, and cultural heritage. The hidden superpower of roots Understanding how roots function is more important than ever as the world faces escalating droughts and the problem of compacted soil. Research from the DIAD beamline revealed how plant roots push through hard soil. X-ray imaging showed how the soil structure changed as a model root pushed through it, while X-ray diffraction measured the forces building up inside the soil. This study, observing the soil’s structure change and mapping the forces within it, was the first of its kind. They found that roots do not simply force soil out of the way. Instead, they create a compressed zone near the tip, then encourage the soil to yield and flow around them. In effect, the soil begins to behave more like modelling clay, leaving behind a stable tunnel called a biopore. The Imaging and Microscopy Group brings together eight experimental facilities: I08, I08-1, DIAD, I12, I13-1, I13-2, I14 and the electron Physical Science Imaging Centre (ePSIC) Imaging and Microscopy Group Understanding this process could help scientists breed crops with roots better suited to hard, dry soils, reducing the need for ploughing and supporting more sustainable farming. In conservation, plants with powerful roots could prepare degraded land for rewilding, creating water channels and breathing spaces for future ecosystems. DOI: 10.1038/s44341-025-00021-7 Fossil reveals silent swimmer of the Jurassic deep Advanced imaging from the I12 beamline indicated that a giant marine reptile from the Early Jurassic period may have used stealth to hunt in dark waters. The research focused on a rare, metre-long fossilised flipper from Temnodontosaurus, a large ichthyosaur that lived around 183 million years ago. Unusually, the fossil preserved soft tissue, giving scientists a much clearer view of the flipper’s original shape and structure. The flipper’s wing-like shape, flexible outer tip and clearly serrated trailing edge suggest that the ichthyosaur had evolved features that helped to reduce noise as it swam. It may have moved through the water almost silently, much like owls use the zigzag edges of their wing feathers to fly quietly while hunting at night. Such specialised adaptations for quiet movement have not been seen before in a marine animal. For Temnodontosaurus, quiet swimming may have helped it approach prey in low-light environments without being detected. The discovery is significant because it gives rare evidence of behaviour from a fossil, not just anatomy. It also shows how studying ancient animals could inspire modern solutions, including ways to reduce human-made noise in the ocean. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09271-w Frozen iron: howAntarctic glaciers feed the Southern Ocean’s hidden fertiliser Iron is essential for phytoplankton, the tiny ocean plants that support marine food webs and help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In the Southern Ocean, iron is often in short supply, which can limit phytoplankton growth. Antarctic shelves release iron into the ocean but less is known about the form of iron coming directly from glacial meltwater. Researchers examined particles fromAntarctic meltwater, shelf sediments and nearby surface waters. They focused on a form of iron that is easier for living organisms to use, but which normally reacts quickly with oxygen and becomes less available. Using X-ray microscopy at the I08 beamline, the team mapped where iron and organic carbon were located inside the particles. They found that many glacier-derived particles were rich in usable iron and closely mixed with organic carbon. This carbon appears to protect the iron, slowing its reaction with oxygen and helping it survive longer in surface waters. The findings suggest Antarctic glaciers are an underestimated source of bioavailable iron. As glacier melting increases, this process could affect phytoplankton growth, Southern Ocean ecosystems and the ocean’s role in storing carbon. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-59981-y 13 14 Annual review 2025/26 Imaging and Microscopy Group