Effect of X-ray free-electron laser-induced shockwaves on haemoglobin microcrystals delivered in a liquid jet

• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-21819-8
• Publication Date: 2021-03-15T11:03:41Z
• Authors: Marie Luise Grünbein; Alexander Gorel; Lutz Foucar; Sergio Carbajo; William Colocho; Sasha Gilevich; Elisabeth Hartmann; Mario Hilpert; Mark Hunter; Marco Kloos; Jason E. Koglin; Thomas J. Lane; Jim Lewandowski; Alberto Lutman; Karol Nass; Gabriela Nass Kovacs; Christopher M. Roome; John Sheppard; Robert L. Shoeman; Miriam Stricker; Tim van Driel; Sharon Vetter; R. Bruce Doak; Sébastien Boutet; Andrew Aquila; Franz Josef Decker; Thomas R. M. Barends; Claudiu Andrei Stan; Ilme Schlichting
• Keywords: Microsecond; Pulse repetition frequency; Free electron model; Crystal (programming language)

Abstract X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) enable obtaining novel insights in structural biology. The recently available MHz repetition rate XFELs allow full data sets to be collected shorter time and can also decrease sample consumption. However, the microsecond spacing of XFEL pulses raises new challenges, including possible damage induced by shock waves that are launched preceding sample-carrying jet. We explored this matter with an X-ray-pump/X-ray-probe experiment employing haemoglobin microcrystals transported via a liquid jet into beam. Diffraction were using shock-wave-free single-pulse scheme as well dual-pulse pump-probe scheme. latter, relative former, reveals significant degradation crystal hit rate, diffraction resolution quality. Crystal structures extracted from two differ. Since our attributes chosen emulate EuXFEL operation at its 4.5 maximum pulse prompts concern about such collection.