After its discovery in 1946/47, it took about 10–15 years until synchrotron radiation (SR) was systematically used for spectroscopy. From that time on, a dramatic growth of the field of SR spectroscopy began. Nowadays, SR based experimental methods play unreplaceable role in the materials characterizations and their development. The combination of unique properties of SR, such as a high intensity, a tuneability, a high degree of polarization and inherent well-defined time structure, makes it particularly well suited for many spectroscopic methods.
In the present course, a brief introduction about SR and its unique properties will be given. After that, the main SR based methods and their meaning in materials science will be highlighted and illustrated. The currently important results obtained for innovative materials in European synchrotron centers DESY (Hamburg, Germany) and MAX IV (Lund, Sweden) will be demonstrated and discussed.
