A unique large-scale research device from Jülich has gone into operation in the USA. At the strongest neutron source in the world, the spallation source SNS in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Forschungszentrum Jülich inaugurated a so-called neutron spin echo (NSE) spectrometer. The NSE spectrometer enables detailed observations to be made of the motion of proteins and polymers. It will thus help to develop improved plastics or to understand metabolic processes in cells.