Overview
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The X-ray Facility at the University
of California, Santa Cruz was commissioned in November, 2006. The laboratory houses a Bruker SMART APEX-II CCD instrument operating on Mo-Kalpha radiation. Data are routinely collected at cryogenic temperatures, with the option of varying the temperature for thermally sensitive samples or for thermal transition studies. Primarily the laboratory operates for small molecule, single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. The laboratory also utilizes a Rigaku MiniFlex Plus powder diffractometer. This unit is housed just upstairs in Dr. Scott Oliver's research lab. Powder diffraction can be used to determine known crystal phases present in a solid sample by comparison with the Internation Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD) Powder Diffraction File (PDF). Also, much structural information can be obtained from powder diffraction data. |
Services
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The primary function of the chemical
crystallography laboratory is to provide X-ray diffraction studies of
small molecules. The final result is the three dimensional chemical
structure of the molecule, as shown on the right. One of the
key services toward this primary function is providing advice to researchers
regarding crystal growth techniques. For reliable and accurate
data to be collected good quality, single crystals are required first.
Optical examination of potential crystals is also one of the services
provided. Several databases are also archived within the X-ray Lab, in particular the Cambridge Crystal Structure Database (CSD), the Inorganic Crystal Structure Database (ICSD) and the Powder Diffraction File (PDF). |  |