James Le Houx
@thebeamline.bsky.social
Materials Engineer | Energy Storage Scientist | Beamline Tinkerer
Emerging Leader Fellow at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory/ The Faraday Institution. He/him.
All views are my own.
Emerging Leader Fellow at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory/ The Faraday Institution. He/him.
All views are my own.
The STFC financial situation is worrying. There's a risk we start seeing facilities vs. strategy as a choice.
But you can't build digital twins or AI models if you can't see the physics happening.
Synchrotrons and neutron sources are the ground truth for Net Zero.
#BatterySky #MaterialScience
But you can't build digital twins or AI models if you can't see the physics happening.
Synchrotrons and neutron sources are the ground truth for Net Zero.
#BatterySky #MaterialScience
February 5, 2026 at 5:35 PM
The STFC financial situation is worrying. There's a risk we start seeing facilities vs. strategy as a choice.
But you can't build digital twins or AI models if you can't see the physics happening.
Synchrotrons and neutron sources are the ground truth for Net Zero.
#BatterySky #MaterialScience
But you can't build digital twins or AI models if you can't see the physics happening.
Synchrotrons and neutron sources are the ground truth for Net Zero.
#BatterySky #MaterialScience
Reposted by James Le Houx
🌟 Applications are now open for the Next Generation of AI Chemists Programme, a funded opportunity for penultimate-year undergraduates from backgrounds under-represented in chemistry.
📍 Imperial London | 📅 6–7 July 2026 (in person)
👉 Apply here: buff.ly/MLfs9Zg
📍 Imperial London | 📅 6–7 July 2026 (in person)
👉 Apply here: buff.ly/MLfs9Zg
February 5, 2026 at 8:01 AM
🌟 Applications are now open for the Next Generation of AI Chemists Programme, a funded opportunity for penultimate-year undergraduates from backgrounds under-represented in chemistry.
📍 Imperial London | 📅 6–7 July 2026 (in person)
👉 Apply here: buff.ly/MLfs9Zg
📍 Imperial London | 📅 6–7 July 2026 (in person)
👉 Apply here: buff.ly/MLfs9Zg
Reposted by James Le Houx
James Le Houx: Benchmarking Autonomy in Scientific Experiments: A Hierarchical Taxonomy for Autonomous Large-Scale Facilities https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.06978 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2601.06978 https://arxiv.org/html/2601.06978
January 13, 2026 at 6:48 AM
James Le Houx: Benchmarking Autonomy in Scientific Experiments: A Hierarchical Taxonomy for Autonomous Large-Scale Facilities https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.06978 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2601.06978 https://arxiv.org/html/2601.06978
Autonomous is a catch-all term that means everything and nothing right now.
I'm curious: if you work at a beamline or a shared facility, what is the #1 thing stopping you from letting an AI agent drive your motors?
Is it the latency, the safety, or the lack of trust?
I'm curious: if you work at a beamline or a shared facility, what is the #1 thing stopping you from letting an AI agent drive your motors?
Is it the latency, the safety, or the lack of trust?
January 13, 2026 at 10:15 AM
Autonomous is a catch-all term that means everything and nothing right now.
I'm curious: if you work at a beamline or a shared facility, what is the #1 thing stopping you from letting an AI agent drive your motors?
Is it the latency, the safety, or the lack of trust?
I'm curious: if you work at a beamline or a shared facility, what is the #1 thing stopping you from letting an AI agent drive your motors?
Is it the latency, the safety, or the lack of trust?
Why do solid-state batteries fail? We used operando X-ray tomography to find out. 🧪
Bare Cu creates localized islands that trigger cracks, but a 50nm Ag nanolayer keeps things uniform and stable, even at high current. 📷🔋
#chemsky #batterysky #sciencesky
Bare Cu creates localized islands that trigger cracks, but a 50nm Ag nanolayer keeps things uniform and stable, even at high current. 📷🔋
#chemsky #batterysky #sciencesky
January 8, 2026 at 4:06 PM
Why do solid-state batteries fail? We used operando X-ray tomography to find out. 🧪
Bare Cu creates localized islands that trigger cracks, but a 50nm Ag nanolayer keeps things uniform and stable, even at high current. 📷🔋
#chemsky #batterysky #sciencesky
Bare Cu creates localized islands that trigger cracks, but a 50nm Ag nanolayer keeps things uniform and stable, even at high current. 📷🔋
#chemsky #batterysky #sciencesky
We need to stop measuring experimental success by data volume (TB/hour) and start measuring it by scientific insight.
In our new arXiv preprint, we propose Heuristic Operando experimentation: a framework to teach beamlines how to think.
arxiv.org/abs/2601.00851 #ScienceSky #AI #BatteryResearch
In our new arXiv preprint, we propose Heuristic Operando experimentation: a framework to teach beamlines how to think.
arxiv.org/abs/2601.00851 #ScienceSky #AI #BatteryResearch
Autonomous battery research: Principles of heuristic operando experimentation
Unravelling the complex processes governing battery degradation is critical to the energy transition, yet the efficacy of operando characterisation is severely constrained by a lack of Reliability, Re...
arxiv.org
January 6, 2026 at 4:33 PM
We need to stop measuring experimental success by data volume (TB/hour) and start measuring it by scientific insight.
In our new arXiv preprint, we propose Heuristic Operando experimentation: a framework to teach beamlines how to think.
arxiv.org/abs/2601.00851 #ScienceSky #AI #BatteryResearch
In our new arXiv preprint, we propose Heuristic Operando experimentation: a framework to teach beamlines how to think.
arxiv.org/abs/2601.00851 #ScienceSky #AI #BatteryResearch
Some news! I’m starting a new chapter as a Senior Lecturer at Greenwich and launching the BASE Lab.
We are teaching beamlines how to think, building a Self-Driving Microscope to hunt for battery failure.
I'm also hiring our founding PhD student. Come build with us! #SciSky #AIforScience
We are teaching beamlines how to think, building a Self-Driving Microscope to hunt for battery failure.
I'm also hiring our founding PhD student. Come build with us! #SciSky #AIforScience
December 5, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Some news! I’m starting a new chapter as a Senior Lecturer at Greenwich and launching the BASE Lab.
We are teaching beamlines how to think, building a Self-Driving Microscope to hunt for battery failure.
I'm also hiring our founding PhD student. Come build with us! #SciSky #AIforScience
We are teaching beamlines how to think, building a Self-Driving Microscope to hunt for battery failure.
I'm also hiring our founding PhD student. Come build with us! #SciSky #AIforScience
In the wake of the Airbus A320 groundings, it's worth remembering that the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source has a facility dedicated to replicating this kind of cosmic bombardment.
It’s called ChipIR.
It allows engineers to test the degradation of avionics before they ever leave the ground.
It’s called ChipIR.
It allows engineers to test the degradation of avionics before they ever leave the ground.
November 29, 2025 at 8:43 AM
In the wake of the Airbus A320 groundings, it's worth remembering that the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source has a facility dedicated to replicating this kind of cosmic bombardment.
It’s called ChipIR.
It allows engineers to test the degradation of avionics before they ever leave the ground.
It’s called ChipIR.
It allows engineers to test the degradation of avionics before they ever leave the ground.
Diving into the new UK AI for Science Strategy.
They’ve made a definitive call, prioritise generating new data over optimising existing archives.
As a materials scientist, I think this is absolutely the right call. Here is why. 🧵1/3
#AIforScience #MaterialsScience
They’ve made a definitive call, prioritise generating new data over optimising existing archives.
As a materials scientist, I think this is absolutely the right call. Here is why. 🧵1/3
#AIforScience #MaterialsScience
November 24, 2025 at 11:32 AM
Diving into the new UK AI for Science Strategy.
They’ve made a definitive call, prioritise generating new data over optimising existing archives.
As a materials scientist, I think this is absolutely the right call. Here is why. 🧵1/3
#AIforScience #MaterialsScience
They’ve made a definitive call, prioritise generating new data over optimising existing archives.
As a materials scientist, I think this is absolutely the right call. Here is why. 🧵1/3
#AIforScience #MaterialsScience
Played around with Meta's new SAM 3 on our X-ray data today.
Top: Our manually trained U-Net (accurate but slow). Bottom: SAM 3 out-of-the-box ("white objects").
It misses some outliers, but getting 90% of the way there with zero training is a win for high-throughput workflows.
#Science #AI
Top: Our manually trained U-Net (accurate but slow). Bottom: SAM 3 out-of-the-box ("white objects").
It misses some outliers, but getting 90% of the way there with zero training is a win for high-throughput workflows.
#Science #AI
November 20, 2025 at 9:36 AM
Huge congrats to Harriet Jones for winning best poster at #IBSim-4i!
She's leading our project adapting #code_saturne for on-the-fly simulation from CT data enabling autonomous workflows.
Thx judges & sponsor #3Dmagination!
#IBSim4i #Simulation #Physics #CFD #AutonomousScience #chemsky #BattChat
She's leading our project adapting #code_saturne for on-the-fly simulation from CT data enabling autonomous workflows.
Thx judges & sponsor #3Dmagination!
#IBSim4i #Simulation #Physics #CFD #AutonomousScience #chemsky #BattChat
October 28, 2025 at 10:15 AM
Huge congrats to Harriet Jones for winning best poster at #IBSim-4i!
She's leading our project adapting #code_saturne for on-the-fly simulation from CT data enabling autonomous workflows.
Thx judges & sponsor #3Dmagination!
#IBSim4i #Simulation #Physics #CFD #AutonomousScience #chemsky #BattChat
She's leading our project adapting #code_saturne for on-the-fly simulation from CT data enabling autonomous workflows.
Thx judges & sponsor #3Dmagination!
#IBSim4i #Simulation #Physics #CFD #AutonomousScience #chemsky #BattChat
At PorTo, ILL's new beamline, tackling Li-ion failure: electrolyte consumption, interlayer buckling, & overcharge.
Running high-res neutron imaging + multi-modal (X-ray/Neutron) correlation & unsupervised AI.
Thx Bratislav Lukić!
#Liion #ILL #CorrelativeImaging #DataScience #chemsky #BattChat
Running high-res neutron imaging + multi-modal (X-ray/Neutron) correlation & unsupervised AI.
Thx Bratislav Lukić!
#Liion #ILL #CorrelativeImaging #DataScience #chemsky #BattChat
October 22, 2025 at 10:12 AM
At PorTo, ILL's new beamline, tackling Li-ion failure: electrolyte consumption, interlayer buckling, & overcharge.
Running high-res neutron imaging + multi-modal (X-ray/Neutron) correlation & unsupervised AI.
Thx Bratislav Lukić!
#Liion #ILL #CorrelativeImaging #DataScience #chemsky #BattChat
Running high-res neutron imaging + multi-modal (X-ray/Neutron) correlation & unsupervised AI.
Thx Bratislav Lukić!
#Liion #ILL #CorrelativeImaging #DataScience #chemsky #BattChat
ACS Spring 2026 abstract deadline: September 29th!
We're chairing a new session in Atlanta. If you use large-scale facilities to study energy storage materials with photons, neutrons, muons, or lasers, we want to hear from you.
Submit here: tinyurl.com/4e3envar
#chemsky #research #ACSSpring2026
We're chairing a new session in Atlanta. If you use large-scale facilities to study energy storage materials with photons, neutrons, muons, or lasers, we want to hear from you.
Submit here: tinyurl.com/4e3envar
#chemsky #research #ACSSpring2026
ACS Spring 2026 - American Chemical Society
callforabstracts.acs.org
September 25, 2025 at 9:17 AM
ACS Spring 2026 abstract deadline: September 29th!
We're chairing a new session in Atlanta. If you use large-scale facilities to study energy storage materials with photons, neutrons, muons, or lasers, we want to hear from you.
Submit here: tinyurl.com/4e3envar
#chemsky #research #ACSSpring2026
We're chairing a new session in Atlanta. If you use large-scale facilities to study energy storage materials with photons, neutrons, muons, or lasers, we want to hear from you.
Submit here: tinyurl.com/4e3envar
#chemsky #research #ACSSpring2026
Reposted by James Le Houx
EIS ice baby
New ideas can be found in the intersection between battery science and planetary science.
Myself and @thebeamline.bsky.social are exploring how ice microstructure will impact radar measurements on Europa using tomography and EIS.
#Europa #icymoons #planetaryscience #tomography
🧪
New ideas can be found in the intersection between battery science and planetary science.
Myself and @thebeamline.bsky.social are exploring how ice microstructure will impact radar measurements on Europa using tomography and EIS.
#Europa #icymoons #planetaryscience #tomography
🧪
September 17, 2025 at 9:10 AM
EIS ice baby
New ideas can be found in the intersection between battery science and planetary science.
Myself and @thebeamline.bsky.social are exploring how ice microstructure will impact radar measurements on Europa using tomography and EIS.
#Europa #icymoons #planetaryscience #tomography
🧪
New ideas can be found in the intersection between battery science and planetary science.
Myself and @thebeamline.bsky.social are exploring how ice microstructure will impact radar measurements on Europa using tomography and EIS.
#Europa #icymoons #planetaryscience #tomography
🧪
In-situ dark field X-ray microscopy of solid state batteries this week. Seriously challenging experiment, thank you to the whole team at ID03 @esrf.fr
September 2, 2025 at 9:35 AM
In-situ dark field X-ray microscopy of solid state batteries this week. Seriously challenging experiment, thank you to the whole team at ID03 @esrf.fr
The classic problem with the weakest link is that when you fix it, you just create a new one.
We saw this happen in real-time with solid-state batteries. Our new preprint shows how fixing one interface just moves the failure to the next weakest spot. 1/6
Paper link: doi.org/10.26434/che...
We saw this happen in real-time with solid-state batteries. Our new preprint shows how fixing one interface just moves the failure to the next weakest spot. 1/6
Paper link: doi.org/10.26434/che...
Operando X-ray Computed Tomography Reveals the Role of Interfacial Nucleation Nanolayers in Suppressing Mechanical Failure in Zero-Excess Lithium All-Solid-State Batteries
Lithium metal (LM) and zero-excess lithium (ZE) anodes offer pathways to increase the energy density of all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs). We employ operando X-ray computed tomography (XCT) combined w...
doi.org
August 19, 2025 at 4:14 PM
The classic problem with the weakest link is that when you fix it, you just create a new one.
We saw this happen in real-time with solid-state batteries. Our new preprint shows how fixing one interface just moves the failure to the next weakest spot. 1/6
Paper link: doi.org/10.26434/che...
We saw this happen in real-time with solid-state batteries. Our new preprint shows how fixing one interface just moves the failure to the next weakest spot. 1/6
Paper link: doi.org/10.26434/che...
What do solid-state batteries & plant roots have in common?
Excited to share our new article in @theconversation.com written with my collaborator Siul Ruiz. We dive into the powerful mechanics roots use to navigate tough soils, vital for our food security. 1/4
theconversation.com/natures-unde...
Excited to share our new article in @theconversation.com written with my collaborator Siul Ruiz. We dive into the powerful mechanics roots use to navigate tough soils, vital for our food security. 1/4
theconversation.com/natures-unde...
Nature’s underground engineers: how plant roots could save harvests from drought
Plant roots don’t just take from soil; they shape it.
theconversation.com
August 7, 2025 at 1:35 PM
What do solid-state batteries & plant roots have in common?
Excited to share our new article in @theconversation.com written with my collaborator Siul Ruiz. We dive into the powerful mechanics roots use to navigate tough soils, vital for our food security. 1/4
theconversation.com/natures-unde...
Excited to share our new article in @theconversation.com written with my collaborator Siul Ruiz. We dive into the powerful mechanics roots use to navigate tough soils, vital for our food security. 1/4
theconversation.com/natures-unde...
Pocket coffee for those 4am beamtimes
July 26, 2025 at 9:21 AM
Pocket coffee for those 4am beamtimes
Pretty exciting beamtime at @diamondlightsource.bsky.social I13-2 this week. We're going from manual sample centering to a fully automated process with a Yasakawa arm, hitting 150 battery samples a day and swapping optics from nm to µm resolution.
July 17, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Pretty exciting beamtime at @diamondlightsource.bsky.social I13-2 this week. We're going from manual sample centering to a fully automated process with a Yasakawa arm, hitting 150 battery samples a day and swapping optics from nm to µm resolution.
How do plant roots push through hard soil? Our new paper in npj Biological Physics and Mechanics uses X-rays to watch it happen. This new view can help us breed more resilient crops for a changing climate.🌾 #SoilScience #Agriculture
tinyurl.com/5mdkrk3e @pereralj.bsky.social @tiinaroose.bsky.social
tinyurl.com/5mdkrk3e @pereralj.bsky.social @tiinaroose.bsky.social
Coupled X-ray imaging/diffraction reveals soil mechanics during analogous root growth - npj Biological Physics and Mechanics
npj Biological Physics and Mechanics - Coupled X-ray imaging/diffraction reveals soil mechanics during analogous root growth
tinyurl.com
July 3, 2025 at 1:27 PM
How do plant roots push through hard soil? Our new paper in npj Biological Physics and Mechanics uses X-rays to watch it happen. This new view can help us breed more resilient crops for a changing climate.🌾 #SoilScience #Agriculture
tinyurl.com/5mdkrk3e @pereralj.bsky.social @tiinaroose.bsky.social
tinyurl.com/5mdkrk3e @pereralj.bsky.social @tiinaroose.bsky.social
Well that's incredibly satisfying, new refactored code building and running a CI/CD pipeline in Github Actions. Only took 165 trys.....
April 21, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Well that's incredibly satisfying, new refactored code building and running a CI/CD pipeline in Github Actions. Only took 165 trys.....
Signs of life again....Watch this space
April 16, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Signs of life again....Watch this space
Harwell, home of the endangered bee orchid. Always impressed by the work of the conservationist team on site led by Bill Temple, looking forward to seeing them flower
April 11, 2025 at 1:47 PM
Harwell, home of the endangered bee orchid. Always impressed by the work of the conservationist team on site led by Bill Temple, looking forward to seeing them flower
Want a summer internship at Rutherford Appleton Lab? 🇬🇧 UK undergrads: learn battery characterisation, work with large science facilities & get hands-on exp with Gabriel Pérez & me!
🚨 Deadline April 14th (1 week left!) Apply: tinyurl.com/3trmeahp
#STEMcareers #Internship #RAL #UKStudents
🚨 Deadline April 14th (1 week left!) Apply: tinyurl.com/3trmeahp
#STEMcareers #Internship #RAL #UKStudents
FUSE Summer Placement in Didcot, Oxfordshire, England
To apply for this placement, we are looking for the following: Essential:
tinyurl.com
April 8, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Want a summer internship at Rutherford Appleton Lab? 🇬🇧 UK undergrads: learn battery characterisation, work with large science facilities & get hands-on exp with Gabriel Pérez & me!
🚨 Deadline April 14th (1 week left!) Apply: tinyurl.com/3trmeahp
#STEMcareers #Internship #RAL #UKStudents
🚨 Deadline April 14th (1 week left!) Apply: tinyurl.com/3trmeahp
#STEMcareers #Internship #RAL #UKStudents