INTEGRATED XRAY IMAGE PLATE DETECTOR SYSTEM

We are requesting funds to purchase state of the art x-ray data collection instrumentation, including an image plate detector, rotating anode x-ray generator and associated optics and cooling components. The multi-wire instrumentation currently at the College is nearing 10 years old and is a generation behind existing state of the art facilities which are to be found at most academic and industrial research laboratories. We are thus at a severe disadvantage with respect to our colleagues and competitors at a time when a series of exciting and important structures are about to be solved. These requested components are essential to the continued vigor and development of structural biology at the College of Medicine. The proposed instrumentation will relieve a bottleneck in data collection which is caused by the large structural community at the College of Medicine. The spatial resolution, overall efficiency and enhanced solid angle of the proposed detector will allow for more rapid and efficient collection of x-ray diffraction data with improved statistical accuracy. These features will directly impact our ability to solve new structures, and will allow for high resolution refinements which are critical for understanding chemistry and biology. The proposed detector system will complement the College's NIH funded Research Resource located at Brookhaven National Laboratory and will allow for optimal use of these facilities.