BESSY II Light Source
BESSY II generates bright light for researching energy and materials
BESSY II is a third-generation synchrotron radiation source that produces extremely bright X-ray light. Researchers from all over the world can use this light for their experiments. BESSY II is a universal tool for studying an endless variety of samples, for example solar cells, materials for solar hydrogen production and quantum materials. Proteins can be studied for the development of new medicines, and meteorites and archaeological finds can be investigated using the soft X-ray light from BESSY II.
BESSY II – more light for research: The electron storage ring BESSY II delivers brilliant X-ray pulses which allow observation of physical and chemical processes in materials.
BESSY II is THE soft X-ray synchrotron in Germany
With its focus on soft X-rays, BESSY II is unique in Germany. In this sense, the facility is the complement to PETRA III of DESY in Hamburg, which serves the hard X-ray spectrum. At our electron storage ring BESSY II, we have an average of 2700 visits from guest researchers per year. They appreciate the high reliability and stability of the photon source.
Our users work on one of the 40 experimental stations, each of which offers the latest methods in spectroscopy and microscopy. BESSY II has an outstanding international reputation for its method development.
Strong in partnership
HZB has strong partners engaged in the continual advancement of BESSY II. Strategic partners include the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), the Max Planck Society, the Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung (BAM) and as well as many research groups at universities, all of whom are forever contributing new ideas.
BESSY II can be visited on the Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften © HZB / M. Setzpfandt
Aerial view of BESSY II at the Wilhelm-Conrad-Röntgen Campus of HZB in Berlin Adlershof © HZB/Dirk Laubner
Explore what happens behind the walls of the BESSY II light source in Germany. This synchrotron at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin attracts researchers from all over the world with its exceptionally bright light.
01:14Optimal conditions for time-resolved experiments
BESSY II furthermore offers extremely exciting possibilities for time-resolved experiments. With the development of low-alpha mode, researchers can study materials with very short light pulses (2 picoseconds). The femtoslicing source at BESSY II is the most successful of its kind in the world. Currently, HZB is using this long-standing experience in time-resolved experimentation to accomplish a worldwide unique upgrade of BESSY II.