Beamline 8.2.1 just deposited its 1000th structure

Here it is at beamline 5.0.2, unpacked from the wooden crate, but not unpacked from its case yet. Install and commissioning in the beamline will begin in just a few weeks!

The new Pilatus3 6M detector has arrived and is on the optical bench at 5.0.2, ready for testing tomorrow when we get light!

We are very fortunate to have an outstanding Scientific Advisory Board for the new beamline (“Gemini”) we are building in sector 2 at the ALS. The board members are: Bob Fischetti (APS), Dan Harrington (SSRL), Gwyndaf Evans (Diamond Light Source) and Dan Harrington (SSRL). All of the committee members have extensive experience in building microfocus…

The Advanced Light Source is planning a major upgrade, which will result in brighter, more coherent beams. The upgrade will occur in 4-5 years, and so now is the time for the biosciences community to define our vision of synchrotron capabilites for biosciences (scattering, diffraction, tomography and IR methods) in the years to come, and…

During the January shutdown, we decided to test the two Q315R detectors that used to live in beamlines 5.0.1 and 5.0.2. Fortunately, they still work! Once Gemini is commissioned (at the end of this year, if all goes well) then we will have to take the Pilatus out of 5.0.1 and move it over to Gemini. Therefore, good to know that the Q315R is still good. Here it is being tested on the floor at 5.0.1.

ALS is down for the month of July and the first week or so of August. We are taking the opportunity to do a bunch of preventative maintenance on our beamlines. Some of the items include: – cleaning the Be window on 502 (may help to decrease scatter in images) – replacing air lines –…