Construction is complete and commissioning has begun on the New Multi-Bend Achromat at the Advanced Photon Source.
It has been a long time coming, but we are happy to announce that we are now open for General User Operations on 24-ID-E!
We will be open to users starting March 11th. For the first two weeks we will be scheduling full days. Starting March 25th, we will move back to 2 shifts (Short - 11am - 7pmCT and Long - 7pm - 9am CT).
Work by David Baker's lab on protein design which used NE-CAT for structural verification and was published in Science, is now featured on the Argonne National Laboratory website.
Two of the major milestones in commissioning a beamline have been achieved on 24-ID-E at NE-CAT. On August 9, 2024, x-rays were delivered by the APS through the Sector 24 front end. Using an ultrasensitive camera focused through a port of the monochromator, APS physicists detected the beam on the monochromator silicon crystals of both 24-ID-C and 24-ID-E. Though the focus was rough, NE-CAT was able to observe the beam. After the September shutdown, Dr. Malcolm Capel was able to carefully steer the beam through the experimental hutches to the sample position over the next two months.
Read the story at WGN or watch to find one of the NE-CAT staff members.
NE-CAT is pleased to offer our Practical Crystallography Course June 3-6, 2024 at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee.
The Advanced Photon Source has begun commissioning the new storage ring and as of Thursday, April 12, there is beam in the first few meters of the storage ring. To see the most recent updates by the Advanced Photon Source, check out the Upgrade website.
Last Fall, the APS offered staff and resident users the ability to tour the synchrotron storage ring while it was being assembled. In October, the magnets for Sector 24 were in place and proof is in the picture of Kay Perry standing in front of them during the tour. Behind her, the yellow curtain marks Sector 23 components which were undergoing bake out to remove everything which could interfere with vaccuum. Prior to Laboratory closure for the holidays, the front ends were slotted into the place and the last (of the 200) modules were been installed.
The APS-U involves replacement of the existing ring with new superconducting magnets that will create a multi-bend achromat. During the month of May, workers at the APS are removing both the old ring and the components which will need to be upgraded for the new lattice. Today, as part of the deconstruction process, the front end table for 24-ID was removed.
Installation of the new ring is scheduled to begin in June.
Iam Campton of FMB Oxford was here in April to install the channel cut crystal for the new monochromator. The crystal is surrounded by a cage and then both items are installed inside the steel vaccuum chamber.
