Event Details

Join Dr Alexandra Longcake from the National Crystallography Service for a seminar on their work in the NCS. Also available on Teams.

Knowledge about the atomic structure of molecules is of crucial importance to confirm their connectivity and reveal intricate structural details. The most widely used method to determine crystal structures is via single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD) of solid, crystallised forms of the compound of interest and as such. Conventional experiments on single-crystal X-ray diffractometers are nowadays available in almost every institution. Besides conventional SCXRD for researchers who do not have access to such instrumentation, the UK’s National Crystallography Service (NCS, www.ncs.ac.uk) also offers a range of advanced techniques to provide single-crystal structure analysis for otherwise inaccessible samples.

In addition to conventional SCXRD experiments, the NCS is also able to offer both ultra-low temperature and high-pressure experimentation allowing the behaviour of compounds under extreme conditions to be studied. The most recent addition to the capabilities of the NCS is expansion into the territory of 3D electron diffraction (3D ED). The newly established National Electron Diffraction Facility (NEDF) delivers 3D ED across the UK, with 2 dedicated instruments (University of Warwick and University of Southampton). This exciting new technique allows single-crystal diffraction experiments on crystallites below 1 micrometre, as often encountered in powder samples.

In addition to these characterisation techniques, we also offer advanced methods for “crystallising the uncrystallisable”, via ENaCt (Encapsulated Nanodroplet Crystallisation) and Crystal Sponge routes. ENaCt protocols leverage solvent-oil interfaces to enable rapid and facile access to a large area of crystallisation space in parallel on an extremely small scale, allowing crystal structure determination for minute sample amounts and in a time efficient manner. The crystal sponge method exploits the host-guest properties of porous MOFs (metal-organic frameworks; sponge), by soaking in and stabilising a solid form of otherwise liquid compounds within the void space of the sponge material.

Our facilities and techniques have proven to be of use to a wide range of compounds and chemistries, from small organic molecules and natural products, to organometallics, coordination complexes, and metal-organic compounds, as well as inorganic materials, and many others.

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