title: [Beginning of use of a new biological neutron diffractometer (iBIX) in J-PARC].
abstract: Ibaraki Prefectural Government together with Ibaraki University and Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has almost finished constructing a time-of-flight (TOF) neutron diffractometer for biological macromolecules for industrial use at J-PARC, IBARAKI Biological Crystal Diffractometer (iBIX). Since 2009, Ibaraki University has been asked to operate this machine in order for users to do experiments by Ibaraki Prefecture. The diffractometer is designed to cover sample crystals which have their cell edges up to around 150 A. It is expected to measure more than 100 samples per year if they have 2 mm(3) in crystal volume, and to measure even around 0.1 mm(3) in crystal volume of biological samples. The efficiency of iBIX is also expected about 100 times larger than those of the present high performance diffractometers at JRR-3 in JAEA when 1MW power realizes in J-PARC. Since December 2008, iBIX has been open to users and several proteins and organic compounds were tested under 20 kW proton power of J-PARC. It was found that one of their proteins was diffracted up to 1.4 A in d-spacing, which was nearly comparable resolution to that of BIX-3 in JRR-3 when used the same crystal as at iBIX for reasonable exposure time. In May 2009, 14 detector units were set up. By the end of fiscal year 2009, the basic part of data reduction software will be finished and an equipment blowing low temperature gas to the sample will be installed with the cooperation of JAEA.
authors.affiliation: College of Engineering, Ibaraki University, Ibaraki, Japan. i.tanaka@mx.ibaraki.ac.jp
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Katsuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kusaka
authors.forename: Takaaki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hosoya
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohhara
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kurihara
authors.forename: Nobuo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Niimura
mesh_terms: D001690:Biological Science Disciplines / Q000295:instrumentation; D003460:Crystallization; D003461:Crystallography / Q000295:instrumentation*; D006859:Hydrogen; D007564:Japan; D046912:Multiprotein Complexes; D033363:Neutron Diffraction / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D014867:Water
chemical_list: D046912:Multiprotein Complexes; D011506:Proteins; D014867:Water; D006859:Hydrogen