PROXIMA-2A

Please contact your LC before departing your lab.

• How many samples?
• Which X-ray wavelengths or heavy atom derivatives?
• Down load the PX2-A_MXCUBE_USERS_GUIDE, SOLEIL_ISPyB_manual and/or REMOTE_ACCESS_PX2-A
  • see the DOWNLOADS section at the bottom of the home page

Sending dewars

For REMOTE ACCESS users, please send a hard disk drive (HDD 1-2 To) with your Dewar.

Dewars should be sent to your Local Contact (one of the people below):

• Willima SHEPARD (Beamline Responsable)
• Serena SIRIGU
• Martin SAVKO

PROXIMA 2A beamline telephone numbers (use on of these for transporting Dewars):

• +33-1-6935-8180 (fixed land line)
• +33-1-6935-8181 (hand held wireless)

SOLEIL's address is:

PROXIMA 2A
Synchrotron SOLEIL
L'Orme des Merisiers
Saint-Aubin, BP 48
91192 GIF-sur-YVETTE CEDEX
FRANCE

Please notify your Local Contact, so that (s)he can refill your dewar upon arrival!

The return of shipping dewars must be by the users. Please provide a FEDEX or DHL account number to your Local Contact.

PROXIMA-2A will take ANY & ALL samples! This includes the BIG, the SMALL and the UGLY!

• big > 10 microns
• small < 10 microns
• ugly = split, fractured and clumped crystals, because these are sometimes made up of nice micro-crystals!

 
Types of sample pins :

- SPINE standard pins only

• pin length = 22 mm (from loop to base)
• goniometer horizontal range = -25 to +5 mm
   

- Manual mounting

• Suitable pins are Hampton, Mitegen & Molecular Dimensions
• The goniometer contains a mini-kappa and the Smart magnet can be inclined for easy cryo-transfers
  • set omega = 0° and kappa = 30 - 60°

- Robot mounting

• The CATS robotic sample changer can hold up to nine (9) uni-pucks which each hold 16 SPINE pins, for a total of 144 pins
• Suitable pins are Hampton, Mitegen & Molecular Dimensions

A short video explaining mounting procedures :

A further video showing the use of a dry shipper and sample recovery :

- Start & finish times for PROXIMA-2A users:

• 8:30 am – 8:00 am
   

- Equipment & accessories available to users include:

• Microscopes, SPINE pins, loops & wands for fishing crystals
• Cryo-equipment - liquid nitrogen, handling dewars, cryo-tongs, gloves, etc...
• ALL OF THIS EQUIPMENT MUST REMAIN ON THE BEAMLINE!
   

- Data Collection Control- Users launch their experiments via the MXCuBE GUI

px2-a_mxcube_users_guide_ws8a.pptx_.pdf (30.06 Mo - pdf) (30.06 Mo)

Media Folder: 

PROXIMA2A

• beam location
• sample transfers (manual & robotic)
• crystal centring
• data collections
• energy changes, Escans & XFE spectra
   

- Accessible X-ray wavelengths

• 6 – 18 keV
   

- Accessible absorption edges

• K-edges Cr – Zr
• L3-edges Ce - U
   

- Typical data collection times

• Minimum exposure time 4.2 ms per frame (238 fps), nominal exposure time 25 ms per frame (40 fps)
• 90s per nominal data collection rate (25 ms per frame, 0.1 degrees per frame, 3600 frames)
• most crystals require 25 ms per 0.1 degrees oscillation angle

- Visualising diffraction images

• ALBULA
• ADXV
   

- Data processing

• XDSME
   

- Canteen Opening Hours

• Closed during shutdowns
• Weekdays (Monday - Friday) : Breakfast 7:30 - 9:00   Lunch 11:45 - 13:45      Dinner 19:00 - 21:00 (closing time 21:30)
• Weekends & Holidays :            Breakfast 7:30 - 9:00   Lunch 12:30 - 13:30      Dinner 19:00 - 21:00 (closing time 21:30)

- Recuperating your data

• download on to external disk drives via USB2 port
• if possible, use the automated script "altsync" (Cntrl-C to stop, and then dimount the drive).
• Only low volumes of data (e.g. MTZ files) can be practically downloaded via the SOLEIL Data Retrieval system

- Remove ALL of your samples

- Sign the Safety Approval Sheet

Important: Please send to us any slides, images or publications of your results...
the more the merrier! Bon courage!