Welcome to the new UK National Electron Diffraction Facility (Established 2023)!
Electron Diffraction is bringing a step change to crystallographic structure determination, primarily through the ability to study crystals a whole magnitude smaller than current X-ray instrumentation (nanocrystals in the range of <1µm).
The National Crystallography Service (NCS, based at the University of Southampton), The University of Warwick and Rigaku are partnering to bring the world’s first national electron diffraction facility to the UK. The facility will provide electron diffraction services, not only enabling X-ray users to examine much smaller specimens but also opening up new opportunities for structure determination in fields such as zeolites, pharmaceuticals, supramolecular chemistry, MOFs, condensed matter physics and many others. The facility will comprise of Rigaku Synergy ED instruments located at both the Warwick and Southampton sites, managed by dedicated Research Technical Professionals, to bring dedicated high throughput capability to both academia and industry.
Our next call for applications will open in May 2024.
If you already have an account on our Portal2 system (http://portal2.ncs.ac.uk/) you can apply through the usual application route. If you do not have an account and would like more information on how to apply email us at info@ncs.ac.uk with your name, email address and institution.
We are operating three modes of access –
A mail in service, operating in much the same way the current NCS operates. Users to mail in their samples to be run by our expert crystallographers.
Users can apply for a shift on the Rigaku Synergy ED, visiting either the Warwick or Southampton site. You can to bring a few samples and will be trained to use the instrument.
Larger scale collaborative projects funded by Research Council facility access.