X-Ray Crystallography

views updated May 23 2018

X-ray crystallography

X-ray crystallography is a laboratory technique used for the study of the internal structure of crystalline materials. More specifically known as x-ray diffraction , the technique is based on the interference pattern produced as x rays pass through the three-dimensional, repeating pattern of atoms within a crystal lattice. The characteristic interference patterns produced are reflective of the molecular structure of the sample. X-ray diffraction has enabled the measurement of distances between planes of atoms and the determination of the arrangement of atoms within the lattice. Once the characteristic pattern for a substance has been identified, x-ray diffraction may also be used to identify an unknown sample of that same material by matching the diffraction pattern of the unknown to the appropriate known pattern. Prior to the discovery of x-ray diffraction, crystallographers had no means by which to measure the internal positions of atoms within crystals and could only hypothesize as to the internal structure based upon external and optical features. X-ray diffraction has allowed crystallographers to demonstrate the orderly internal structure of crystals and has profoundly affected science since the inception of the technique.

In 1895, x rays were discovered by German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen (1845–1923) while experimenting with cathode rays. In 1912, German physicist Max von Laue (1879–1960) suggested that x rays interacting with a crystal could produce a distinctive interference pattern. His hypothesis, for which he was awarded the 1914 Nobel Prize, proved to be correct. The procedure demonstrated the internal order of atoms within a crystal and was the origin of x-ray crystallography. In 1914, the father and son team of English physicists, William Henry Bragg (1862–1942) and William Lawrence Bragg (1890–1971) refined the analysis of crystalline structure with x-ray diffraction, determined the atomic structure of a simple inorganic substance, common salt (NaCl), and deciphered the mathematical relationships between crystal structure and the associated diffraction pattern. They were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in 1915; the younger Bragg was the youngest-ever Nobel laureate at age 25.

Crystalline substances have an ordered three-dimensional arrangement with a particular spacing of atoms. When x rays strike the atoms within the crystal, the atoms absorb and reemit the energy from the x rays in the form of spherical wave fronts emanating from each atom. The waves traveling outward from each atom interact with other waves in the processes known as constructive and destructive interference. In some directions, the waves cancel each other and little energy remains; in other directions the energy is reinforced and a zone of increased energy exists. The resulting pattern of constructive and destructive interference is known as a diffraction pattern. The patterns are controlled by the spacing of atoms within the matrix and are unique to that substance.

In its most basic form, a diffractometer consists of three main components; a source of x rays and the means to direct the beam to the sample, a sample holder, and a method for collecting the resultant radiation and recording the diffraction pattern. In the Laue method, a single crystal is placed in the x-ray beam and the diffraction pattern is captured on photographic film. The crystal is stationary and the method allows for the study of symmetry within the crystal structure. The rotational method of diffraction is similar to the Laue method in that a single, well-formed crystal is used. As the name suggests, however, the crystal is rotated about one axis, allowing the collection of a greater quantity of diffraction data. The difficulties associated with obtaining and orienting well-formed crystals eventually led to the development of the powder method of x-ray crystallography. In this case, the sample is ground to a powder and the diffracted energy from all of the atomic planes within the material are measured simultaneously.

On modern diffractometers, electronic detectors linked to chart recorders have replaced photographic film. The information provided by each of these methods is quite similar, but the automated electronic system has a number of advantages. These advantages include the ability to read the data values directly from the chart without the need for careful measurements, the intensity of the energy peaks is clearly visible on the chart, no need for film developing, and rapid data collection.

X-ray crystallography was initially used to investigate the structure of minerals , confirming and refining the crystallographic descriptions. Use of the technique was expanded to the investigation of metals, alloys, and inorganic and organic chemical substances. More recently, biomedical research has utilized the technique for the investigation of the structure and dynamics of proteins , nucleic acids, and other biological molecules. Research into microelectronics and semiconductors, as well as pharmaceutical research, continue to rely on the qualities of x-ray crystallography.

See also Electromagnetic spectrum; Mineralogy.


Resources

books

Bragg, William L. The Crystalline State: A General Survey. London: G. Bell and Sons Ltd., 1949.

Clegg, William, ed. Crystal Structure: Principles and Practice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

Hammond, Christopher. The Basics of Crystallography and Diffraction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

other

Rupp, Bernhard. "Crystallography 101." [cited January 14, 2003]. <http://www-structure.llnl.gov/Xray/101index.html>.

Weiss, Manfred S. "X-ray Crystallography." 1998 [cited January 14, 2003]. <http://www.imb-jena.de/www_sbx/manfred/zteach/page1.html>.


David B. Goings

KEY TERMS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Crystal

—A solid, homogeneous body composed of a single element or compound having a fixed and regular internal atomic arrangement that may be expressed by external planar faces.

Crystal lattice

—The ordered, three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in a crystal.

Crystallography

—The study of crystals, including their growth, structure, properties, and classification.

Diffraction

—The process by which the direction of wave motion is modified by bending around an obstacle.

Diffractometer

—The laboratory instrument used for x-ray crystallographic analysis.

Interference

—The effect two sets of electromagnetic waves have on each other, and the combined pattern which may be detected as formed by this interaction.

X ray

—Electromagnetic radiation of very short wavelength, and very high energy.

X-ray Crystallography

views updated May 17 2018

X-ray crystallography

X-ray crystallography was first developed as a means of determining the nature of X-rays themselves. It was not intended to be a research tool. In crystallography X-rays are used to probe the structures of crystals. The pattern of diffracted X-rays is similar to an atomic "shadow." By examining where the X-rays are blocked by the crystal's atoms, scientists can define the structure of those atoms.

Medical Uses for Crystallography

Perhaps the most important application of X-ray crystallography is its use in synthesizing (blending) substances. Many of the medicinal chemicals that have been discovered by scientists are very difficult to produce naturally in large amounts. When this happens, it becomes necessary to create the chemicals in the laboratory through synthesis. Before a chemist can synthesize a substance, a map of its atomic structure must be obtained. This map can only be drawn by using X-ray crystallography.

Few scientists have been more successful at this than British chemist Dorothy Hodgkin (1910-). During World War II (1939-1945), Hodgkin and her colleagues determined the structure of penicillin. The synthesis of this drug was necessary for mass wartime production. Since then Hodgkin's team has worked on the mapping of vitamin B12, the vitamin prescribed to prevent pernicious anemia (a chronic blood disorder characterized by weakness and pallor). The team also worked on mapping insulin. Insulin is used in the treatment of diabetes (another blood disorder).

Other researchers have used X-ray technologies to record the structures of proteins, hemoglobin, and the double-helix of DNA structure (deoxyribonucleic acid).

Creating a New Science

The development of X-ray crystallography also created the science of mineralogy. Once the inner structures of many minerals were determined, mineralogists were able to define the major mineral groups. The understanding that stems from crystallography has also allowed scientists to construct the man-made minerals used in industry.

[See also Barium ; Bragg, William Henry and William Lawrence ; Coolidge, William ; Radiotherapy ]

X-ray diffraction crystallography

views updated May 08 2018

X-ray diffraction crystallography A method of analysis in which an X-ray beam of known wavelength is directed at a crystal, and the beam is diffracted by reflections off planes of atoms in the crystal. By recording the angular positions of diffracted beams, the spacing between atomic planes can be determined according to the Bragg equation, nλ = 2d sinθ (see BRAGG'S LAW). The procedure is repeated for various directions in the crystal and a model of its internal structure established. In geology, the technique is used to identify minerals.

X-ray crystallography

views updated May 14 2018

X-ray crystallography Use of X-rays to discover the molecular structure of crystals. It uses the phenomenon of X-ray diffraction, the scattering of an X-ray beam by the atomic structure of a crystal, and has been used to show that DNA can produce crystals.

X-ray crystallography

views updated May 29 2018

X-ray crystallography The use of X-ray diffraction to determine the structure of crystals or molecules, such as nucleic acids. The technique involves directing a beam of X-rays at a crystalline sample and recording the diffracted X-rays on a photographic plate. The diffraction pattern consists of a pattern of spots on the plate, and the crystal structure can be worked out from the positions and intensities of the diffraction spots. X-rays are diffracted by the electrons in the molecules and if molecular crystals of a compound are used, the electron density distribution in the molecule can be determined.