Welcome to VMXi

Currently VMXi offers: 

• Oscillation experiments (up to 60 degrees of data / crystal) for crystals >10 μm with automatic data processing, merging and intensity based clustering, with results accessed via Synchweb.
• Grid scans over a user-defined area to assess diffraction quality and with data analysed as serial crystallography (SSX) data.
• Ligand fitting pipeline from user provided SMILES code.

Which can help you with the following experiment types: 

• Room temperature data collection including ligand/ fragment studies.
• Optimisation of crystallisation conditions.
• Data collection on samples sensitive to cryocooling/ handling.
• Multi crystal analysis with clustering to identify different structures within crystal populations.
• Serial data collection via grid scans.

There are four modes of access to VMXi, all by prior arrangement with the VMXi team: 

• Bringing plates (either Greiner Crystal QuickX™ or MiTeGen In-Situ-1™) to VMXi.
• Shipping crystallisation plates in suitable SSRL Blue Box systems.
• Users coming to Diamond to set up plates in the Crystallisation Facility.
• Shipping samples to be set up by Diamond staff.

If you would like to collect room temperature data at VMXi, please contact the beamline team letting us know the problem you are trying to solve. 

If you require further details, do not hesitate to get in touch - VMXi@diamond.ac.uk

J. Sanchez-Weatherby, J. Sandy, H. Mikolajek, CMC. Lobley, M. Mazzorana, J. Kelly, G. Preece, R. Littlewood, TLM. Sørensen VMXi: a fully automated, fully remote, high-flux in situ macromolecular crystallography beamline Synchrotron Radiat. J. 26 (2019) 291-301.

H. Mikolajek, J. Sanchez-Weatherby, J. Sandy, R.J. Gildea, I. Campeotto, H. Cheruvara, J.D. Clarke, T. Foster, S. Fujii, I.T. Paulsen, B.S. Shahk & M.A. Hough Protein-to-structure pipeline for ambient-temperature in situ crystallography at VMXi ICUr 10 (2023) 420-429

J. Sandy, H. Mikolajek, A. Thompson, J. Sanchez-Weatherby & M.A. Hough Crystallization and In Situ Room Temperature Data Collection Using the Crystallisation Facility at Harwell and Beamline VMXi, Diamond Light Source JoVE (2024)

H. Mikolajek, J. Sanchez-Weatherby, J. Sandy, R.J. Gildea, I. Campeotto, H. Cheruvara, J.D. Clarke, T. Foster, S. Fujii, I.T. Paulsen, B.S. Shahk & M.A. Hough Protein-to-structure pipeline for ambient-temperature in situ crystallography at VMXi
2023 - Read more on IUCr

Features include:

In situ data collection.

Dectris Eiger2 X 4M detector - maximum frame rate of 560 Hz, 75 x 75 µm² silicon sensor.

Examples of protein crystals imaged within crystallization plates. Crosshairs represent positions selected for data collection and crystal size is indicated by a scale bar. Crystal structures were obtained from all of these crystals at VMXi.