High-resolution NMR field-cycling device for full-range relaxation and structural studies of biopolymers on a shared commercial instrument

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High-resolution NMR field-cycling device for full-range relaxation and structural studies of biopolymers on a shared commercial instrument


Abstract Improvements are described in a shuttling field-cycling device (Redfield in Magn Reson Chem 41:753â??768, 2003), designed to allow widespread access to this useful technique by configuring it as a removable module to a commercial 500 MHz NMR instrument. The main improvements described here, leading to greater versatility, high reliability and simple construction, include: shuttling provided by a linear motor driven by an integrated-control servomotor; provision of automated bucking magnets to allow fast two-stage cycling to nearly zero field; and overall control by a microprocessor. A brief review of history and publications that have used the system is followed by a discussion of topics related to such a device including discussion of some future applications. A description of new aspects of the shuttling device follows. The minimum round trip time to 1T and above is less than 0.25 s and to 0.002 T is 0.36 s. Commercial probes are used and sensitivity is that of the host spectrometer reduced only by relaxation during travel. A key element is development of a linkage that prevents vibration of the linear motor from reaching the probe.

• Content Type Journal Article
• Category Article
• Pages 1-19
• DOI 10.1007/s10858-011-9594-1
• Authors
  • Alfred G. Redfield, Biochemistry Department, Brandeis University, Mail stop 009, Waltham, MA 02154, USA

• • Journal Journal of Biomolecular NMR
  • Online ISSN 1573-5001
  • Print ISSN 0925-2738

Source: Journal of Biomolecular NMR