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Beamtime available at CHESS, October 13 - December 7, 2010
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The CHESS/MacCHESS facility, located at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY,
invites macromolecular crystallographers and users of BioSAXS to apply for time
on one or more of our stations:
A1 station, monochromatic wiggler source, suitable for Se SAD experiments as
well as native data collection, with ADSC Q-210 detector.
F1 station, monochromatic wiggler source, suitable for Br SAD or native data,
with ADSC Q-270 detector and ALS-type automounter.
F2 station, wiggler source tunable from 7 - 14 keV, can be configured either for
MAD/SAD experiments, with ADSC Q-210 detector, or for BioSAXS experiments, with
ADSC Q-1 detector.
G1 station, wiggler source with multilayer optics, general purpose station which
will be available for SAXS experiments during part of the run; good data can be
obtained for d-spacings up to 2500 Angstroms.
===== Special options ======
Pressure-cryocooling of (unfrozen) crystals is available by prearrangement. This
method can reduce the damage induced by cryocooling, often with no need for
cryoprotectants (Kim et al., Acta Cryst. D61, 881-890 (2005)).
Microbeam (down to about 5 microns) using focusing capillary optics is available
on request at any of the stations.
======= Support =======
CHESS/MacCHESS provides a high level of support for all users. We are very
willing to help with non-standard experimental setups - just ask. Our staff
scientists also invite collaborations for more extended projects investigating
novel techniques.
Mail-in service is available - we will be pleased to collect (and process, if
you like) data from crystals that you send to us.
======== Applying for time ========
Visit http://www.chess.cornell.edu and look at "Beam Time" under the "Users"
menu. All applications can be done on line, any time. Processing of proposals is
rapid, with a turn-around time of just a couple of weeks for the usual Express
Mode option.
More information is available on the web site, or contact administrator
Kathy Dedrick, [email protected].
========= More about pressure-cryocooling =================
In 2009, pressure-cooling succeeded in increasing the success rate for
cryocooling users' crystals which had previously yielded only one good "freeze"
out of dozens or hundreds.
The option of pressure-cooling in capillaries is available for crystals which
are not compatible with oil coating, or are subject to mechanical damage during
loop mounting.
Reminder: pressure-cooling will not improve crystals that are bad at room
temperature; what it does is reduce damage on cryocooling. Please verify that
your crystals show acceptable diffraction at room temperature before requesting
pressure-cooling.
For more information on pressure-cryocooling, contact Chae Un Kim,
[email protected].
