X-ray Crystallography

X-ray crystallography determines the structure of molecules by mapping and analyzing how X-rays interact with crystals. This offers researchers a way to study the atomic-level structure of materials in three dimensions. Crystallography reveals a compound's molecular structure and how those molecules fill space by interacting with neighbors. The size, shape and intermolecular interactions of molecules are essential details for developing new medicines, materials, and devices of modern life. This technique has wide applicability across many areas of chemistry, biotechnology, and materials science. The new D8 Venture diffractometer, funded by NC Biotechnology Center, NC State University and Duke University Department of Chemistry, provides state-of-the-art capabilities to scientists throughout the Triangle region and state through NC State’s Molecular Education, Technology, and Research Innovation Center (METRIC).