The Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (BESAC) — established on September 4, 1986 — provides valuable, independent advice to the Department of Energy on the Basic Energy Sciences program regarding the complex scientific and technical issues that arise in the planning, management, and implementation of the program. BESAC's recommendations include advice on establishing research and facilities priorities; determining proper program balance among disciplines; and identifying opportunities for interlaboratory collaboration, program integration, and industrial participation. The Committee primarily includes representatives of universities, national laboratories, and industries involved in energy-related scientific research. Particular attention is paid to obtaining a diverse membership with a balance of disciplines, interests, experiences, points of view, and geography. BESAC operates in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA, Public Law 92-463; 92nd Congress, H.R. 4383; October 6, 1972) and all applicable FACA Amendments, Federal Regulations and Executive Orders.
Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (BESAC)
Highlights
![A laser creates pairs of positive and negative charges bound together (large blue and red spheres) in a device made of three atomically thin layers (sheets of metallic red and green spheres). The charge pairs change the properties of the laser beam (red).](/-/media/bes/images/highlights/2024/Zhou-Highlight.png?h=508&w=553&la=en&hash=400DA64A11E44604A3BD91CFAF600636321B67FDD1570C7E1345474849C8D69F)
![This research studied the reduction of carbon monoxide to methanol using ruthenium complexes. Information about the ruthenium came from data collected at the National Synchrotron Light Source II.](/-/media/bes/images/highlights/2024/Highlight_Kurtz.png?h=630&w=800&la=en&hash=8376579D6DE1CB79CBA182AD12704F63FB8443A070058D28E4EBE938BD11E965)
![Researchers combined high magnetic fields with X-ray scattering to reveal the connection between superconducting vortices (black circles), charge density waves (red wiggles), and spin density waves (blue wiggles) in a cuprate superconductor.](/-/media/bes/mse/images/highlights/2024/High-Temp.png?h=301&w=624&la=en&hash=877F42657C249B0924F734C345FC839D4AA0AA49A5D14BCB51DFA1635ED6902B)
![Nanocrystals (left) capture light (hv) and then transfer electrons (e-) to nitrogenase enzymes (upper right) to convert dinitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3). A sacrificial reaction (bottom right) completes the process.](/-/media/bes/csgb/images/highlights-of-progress/2024/Highlight_King.png?h=595&w=800&la=en&hash=AE85145CD7412417B981DD5CB54C12A446CBCB4BD0092A543046BD0DC38AD186)
![Left: A beam of electrons generates vibrational waves in a crystal lattice that are then reflected by quantum dots. Right: Generated vibrations are more easily reflected by abrupt, sharp interfaces of materials than by diffuse ones.](/-/media/bes/mse/images/highlights/2024/Pan.png?h=544&w=936&la=en&hash=81D974DD9F233DF01E8D309EE95F0DC678891544B46662F7DB2526F988CF0EB3)
![Map of resistivity as a function of the charge carrier density (x axis) and current density (y axis) in bilayer graphene. Superconductivity occurs in the dark blue region in the bottom graph and is turned off by a magnetic field (upper graph).](/-/media/bes/mse/images/highlights/2024/Lau.png?h=585&w=755&la=en&hash=7285F5EC9F31AEB45925BE84BDE40D84E4EC9077A7BD7DC70718DA8F2C848B27)