Info
CHESS is a national synchrotron X-ray user facility at Cornell University (Ithaca, NY). One of only six high-energy (6 GeV) synchrotron X-ray facilities worldwide. ~1,500 user visits annually. Part of the Cornell Laboratory for Accelerator-based Sciences and Education (CLASSE). Connected to the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR). Supported by NSF, NIH, AFRL, and New York State.
Director search active
As of late 2025, Cornell posted a search for a new CHESS Director (salary 325k). Joel Brock previously held the role. This is a leadership transition moment.
DiffUSE relevance
Nozomi Ando has CHESS beamtime (noted in DiffUSE Fall Retreat planning as a scheduling constraint). CHESS’s unique capabilities for time-resolved studies and high-dynamic range scattering are directly relevant to diffuse scattering data collection. NSF recently awarded CHESS $20M to build a new precision X-ray beamline for biological and environmental systems (announced early 2026).
People
| Name | Role | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Joel Brock | Director (outgoing, search active) | Cornell, Applied and Engineering Physics |
| Sol Gruner | Former Director (17 years) | Cornell, Atomic and Solid State Physics |
| Nigel Lockyer | CLASSE Director (as of 2023) | Cornell |
Funding
- NSF (primary, cooperative agreement)
- NIH (protein crystallography)
- AFRL (Air Force Research Laboratory)
- New York State
- Cornell University
- Recent: $20M NSF award for new precision X-ray beamline (announced Feb 2026)
Capabilities
- High-dynamic range scattering
- Time-resolved studies
- High-resolution spectroscopy
- Samples in high magnetic fields
- Plant science/agriculture applications
- Biohazard BL3 containment facility (CHESS East)
Key Relationships
- Nozomi Ando (DiffUSE PI) has active CHESS beamtime
- CHESS uses HDF5 data format (connects to NIAC)
- Data processing via DIALS, XDS, or other pipelines
- Structures deposited in RCSB PDB / wwPDB
- Cornell’s MTA policies are relevant to DiffUSE’s materials transfer work
- FOXDEN computing infrastructure (visible on GitHub)
Key Reference
CHESS website: https://www.chess.cornell.edu Wikipedia: Cornell Laboratory for Accelerator-based Sciences and Education