Ceramic micro-injection molded nozzles for serial femtosecond crystallography sample delivery
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, Hamburg (Germany)
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, Hamburg (Germany); Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)
- Univ. of Hamburg, Hamburg (Germany)
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Max-Planck-StraBe, Geesthacht (Germany)
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, Hamburg (Germany); Univ. of Hamburg, Hamburg (Germany); Centre for Ultrafast Imaging, Hamburg (Germany)
Serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) using X-ray Free-Electron Lasers (XFELs) allows for room temperature protein structure determination without evidence of conventional radiation damage. In this method, a liquid suspension of protein microcrystals can be delivered to the X-ray beam in vacuum as a micro-jet, which replenishes the crystals at a rate that exceeds the current XFEL pulse repetition rate. Gas dynamic virtual nozzles produce the required micrometer-sized streams by the focusing action of a coaxial sheath gas and have been shown to be effective for SFX experiments. Here, we describe the design and characterization of such nozzles assembled from ceramic micro-injection molded outer gas-focusing capillaries. Trends of the emitted jet diameter and jet length as a function of supplied liquid and gas flow rates are measured by a fast imaging system. The observed trends are explained by derived relationships considering choked gas flow and liquidflow conservation. In conclusion, the performance of these nozzles in a SFX experiment is presented, including an analysis of the observed background.
- Research Organization:
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-76SF00515
- OSTI ID:
- 1234709
- Journal Information:
- Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 86, Issue 12; ISSN 0034-6748
- Publisher:
- American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
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