VMXm Manual

We are pleased to announce that the micro/nanofocus macromolecular crystallography beamline VMXm is now accepting applications for use of commissioning beamtime. During this period beamline staff will be working to optimize the performance of VMXm and will work closely with users to obtain the best possible results from user samples within the current operating envelope. 

VMXm enables data collection from crystals smaller than 1 µm in size. We can currently cater for crystals in the range 2-10 µm in size (smallest dimension). We provide a variable beam size from 0.4 x 1.3 to 9 x 13 µm (V x H) with fully tunable energy (10 to 22 keV currently available). Data collection can be performed using either an Eiger2X 9M CdTe (high X-ray energies) and a Pilatus3 6M (medium X-ray energies). 

Samples must be prepared on TEM grids and mounted on special holders that the beamline staff can provide. For this round of commissioning access, we recommend that users work closely with beamline staff in the preparation of samples and use the beamline sample preparation lab that contains a Leica GP2 plunge freezing instrument and cryo-equipped SEM for sample characterization.